The Mifflin Street Co-op will likely close its doors forever before the end of the fall semester.
In an e-mail sent to co-op members Monday afternoon, President Matt Stoner outlined the financial difficulties that have plagued the 38-year-old grocery store for several years.
According to Stoner's e-mail, the co-op, 32 N. Bassett St., has lost more than $30,000 in the last six months and nearly $60,000 this year. Stoner said the store is currently clinging to life on a $20,000 loan from Heartland Credit Union.
Still, the IRS is likely to ask for more than $100,000 from the co-op after factoring in back taxes and penalties for missed payments.
The store's board of directors will vote on whether to close permanently Nov. 20. The board last voted on closing the co-op in April, electing to remain open and take out the $20,000 loan.
""To remain open is no longer a financially responsible decision,"" Stoner said. ""We feel that it would be irresponsible to our vendors, our creditors and our members.""
A long-time supporter of fair trade and sustainable agriculture, the Mifflin Street Co-op first opened in 1968 and immediately became a hotbed of radical activity near campus. The store was the original sponsor of the Mifflin Street Block Party and is widely regarded as a historical landmark for Madison liberals.
""We have struggled to remain open in the midst of a changing world that didn't always believe in us,"" Stoner said in the e-mail. ""Unfortunately, the mistakes of the past and the changing climate of the present have become too great to overcome.""
