In the ongoing saga between the city of Redondo Beach, Calif., and Fun Factory owner Steve Shoemaker, the Daily Breeze reported this week that the longtime arcade will close in January, shortly after the new year.
Shoemaker signed a deal with the city in 2017 that cut short his lease by seven years in exchange for $9 million to make way for modern redevelopment of the city’s waterfront from CenterCal Properties. With that deal tied up in court, Shoemaker had argued the reasons to vacate the Fun Factory space no longer existed and a new deal should be brokered. That didn’t happen.
What officially cemented his decision to close, he told the Daily Breeze, was a recent 11-page letter sent from an attorney on behalf of the city. Shoemaker did not share the letter, but said it basically stated that he needed to vacate his business of 50 years “in accordance with an agreement he signed in 2017.”
Shoemaker noted in a letter on his website that Fun Factory will close in time to vacate by the mandated Jan. 17 date.
“I’ve had the best night of sleep I’ve had for a long time,” he said after making the decision. “I finally thought it through very carefully and considering how difficult the city has been trying to negotiate something, they would be an intolerable landlord.”