After sixteen years of serving up sweets and treats, the owners of Sugar Mountain announced that they will be closing due to issues with their lease. The small space on Parker Road just east of Alma Drive has long been popular with area families for its shaved ice, shakes, smoothies and frozen hot chocolate among other items. Owners Mary and Candice say they will continue to look for a new spot now that they have exhausted all efforts to remain in their longtime locale.
According to Candice, things have been challenging since a new owner took over part of their shopping center a few years ago. Since then, she says that communication has been lacking. Last year, they even received a termination letter before eventually renewing their lease for another year. They planned to do the same this year but never received a response from the landlord. Since their lease is up at the end of the month, they figured it was time to move on.
“We really didn’t think we would have a problem keeping it since we’ve been here for 16 years,” Candice said. “We are going to start looking (for a new place) more seriously now. Until then, we will miss the community.”
Since the news began to get out, she says people have been coming by showing photos of their kids eating shaved ice when they were younger. Over the years there were many kids who told her that they would like to work at Sugar Mountain when they were old enough. Some of them eventually did.
“We’ve really gotten to be a part of people’s lives, and they’ve been a part of ours,” Candice said. “We love bringing people any sort of joy, and we’re so proud we got to do it here for so long.”
Sugar Mountain is set to close for good this Sunday, Aug. 28.
