Statement from Ownership Regarding Danny’s Pizza
Statement from The Promenade at Bolingbrook Ownership
The Promenade at Bolingbrook (“Ownership”) has elected to respond to certain public allegations made by Danny’s Pizza and Burger Bar (“Danny’s”) in connection with their upcoming departure from The Promenade. While we typically refrain from addressing legal matters in a public forum, we feel compelled to correct the record due to the spread of one-sided and misleading narratives that we believe are causing harm to the reputation of The Promenade and, most importantly, to its valued tenants.
We have reviewed social media posts, associated comments with these posts, and emails received from members of the public in connection with Danny’s announced departure later this month. In the interest of transparency and fairness, we would like to present the following factual background:
On March 24, 2025, following arguments presented by both Ownership and Danny’s, a judge in the Will County Circuit Court ruled in favor of Ownership, issuing an eviction order and awarding a judgment in the amount of $163,891.81 against Danny’s. This amount reflects past-due rent, court costs, and attorney’s fees incurred by Ownership. The judge ordered Danny’s to vacate the premises by May 23, 2025. Notably, this judgment stems from an eviction complaint filed by Ownership in August 2024, more than seven months ago and over a month prior to the start of any construction activities at The Promenade.
Last Tuesday, April 15th, Ownership filed a Motion to Dismiss the lawsuit that Danny’s brought against Ownership in January, 2025 — approximately five months after our initial eviction filing. Danny’s claims against Ownership relate to construction work initiated by Ownership at The Promenade. While our motion primarily addresses legal principles, it highlights a critical point: Danny’s was already more than $80,000 in arrears before construction ever began.
Despite Danny’s public assertions, the facts do not support the narrative that construction at The Promenade is the cause of their departure. The reality is that Danny’s has not made a full and timely rent payment since 2023. While occasional partial payments have been received, they represent only a small fraction of the amounts owed. Moreover, Danny’s has consistently failed to provide the required sales reporting under the lease, depriving Ownership of any meaningful insight into their financial performance or their ability to meet contractual obligations. We categorically reject the claim that construction activities at The Promenade materially impacted Danny’s business. Although we have not yet received complete sales data, we expect to obtain it either through discovery in connection with Danny’s pending lawsuit, if not dismissed, or through post-judgment enforcement proceedings. We are confident that the evidence will fully support our position.
We have not had direct communication with Danny’s since the entry of the eviction order, however, the Mayor of Bolingbrook has commendably acted as a neutral liaison between the parties. Danny’s legal counsel has also been in touch with our legal team to explore a potential resolution. While we outright rejected an offer to settle the matter for “pennies on the dollar,” we have expressed a willingness to consider a reasonable lease workout. Importantly, we made clear that any discussion must begin with Danny’s dismissal of its baseless lawsuit. To date, they have refused to do so, prompting us to proceed with our Motion to Dismiss after delaying filing to give Danny’s time to respond to our proposal.
At this stage, we will continue to enforce the eviction and pursue the judgment.
When a landlord must pursue an eviction to this stage, two unfortunate realities often present themselves:
- The tenant may have the financial ability to pay rent but chooses not to — a decision that reflects a character issue, in our opinion. In our experience, even if the immediate issue is resolved, landlords often find themselves in the same position again, repeatedly trying to collect unpaid rent for the same underlying reasons.
- Alternatively, the tenant may lack the financial capacity to pay rent at any sustainable level, and the business is simply not viable.
In the case of Danny’s, we simply do not know which of these realities applies, as they have provided no transparency into their financial condition at The Promenade. It is important to note, however, that Ownership has a long-standing track record of working collaboratively with tenants experiencing financial strain—particularly those who engage with us in good faith. This included Danny’s. In late 2022, we restructured their lease in an effort to support their continued operations, which included Ownership forgiving approximately $200,000 in past-due rent. Unfortunately, despite this substantial concession, Danny’s again ultimately defaulted on their lease obligations, and the pattern of non-payment resumed even with this assistance.
Finally, and most critically, we want the public to know that we understand the significance of The Promenade to the Village of Bolingbrook. This project is a cornerstone of the community, and we take our stewardship of it seriously. While The Promenade may evolve in the coming years, we are committed to investing millions — if not tens of millions — of dollars into its revitalization.
In the short time since taking leadership of this effort, we have focused on two key objectives:
- Stabilizing the current tenant occupancy; and
- Launching a dynamic new leasing campaign to attract fresh, exciting tenants.
We have already achieved promising results and hope to make formal announcements soon. Our existing on-site management team remains in place and has shown great dedication to the project’s success.
We ask for your patience and continued support. Please continue to shop local and support the outstanding tenants currently operating at The Promenade — they deserve your patronage.
With regard to the matter involving Danny’s, this will be our only public statement. We intend to resolve the remainder of this matter privately and will not be responding to additional comments or inquiries.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support.
— The Promenade at Bolingbrook Ownership
Reference Documents:
TPB_Danny’s Pizza Motion to Dismiss [25 MB]
