There will be no more gyros on South Campus.
Greek Village Gyros, located at 1606 N. High St., opened for business in 1970, when Roula Panagiotopoulus immigrated to the United States with her husband and 18-month-old daughter.
“I worked a whole year without pay to establish this business when we were starting out,” Panagiotopoulus said. “We opened the business without knowing any English.”
She will be closing the doors to Greek Village Gyros one final time on Jan. 31, to make room for the University Gateway Center.
“I’m just so sad,” Panagiotopoulus said. “I’m stressing out. I am starting all over again.”
Campus Partners gave $105,000 to the Panagiotopoulus family for their property and their loss of business, she said. Panagiotopoulus and her husband – who co-own the restaurant with her brother-in-law – used their share of the money to relocate to 3260 W. Broad St. Panagiotopoulus’s brother-in-law, 59, was not interested in starting over again.
“You can’t make a business with $52,000, and I’ve had to put some of my own money up for it,” she said. “My husband didn’t want to relocate, but we have to if we want to survive.”
With pictures of children and grandchildren, Greek flags and portraits of Greek Orthodox saints hanging on the wall behind her, Panagiotopoulus reminisced about happier, more successful times.
“All of the boys and girls would be walking down High Street together, and there would be lines outside of the (bars’) doors as late as 2 a.m.,” she said. “We used to make more than $1,000 from 10 p.m. until 3 a.m.”
Many of the bars on south campus have closed over the years, and Campus Partners now owns the land. Panagiotopoulus said her business has declined significantly over the last five years.
“You close the bars, and what money can you make?” she said. “It looks like a ghost town … Where are the 60,000 students?”
Kevin Taksar, a senior in family resource management, is one of “the 60,000” who does eat at Greek Village Gyros.
“I frequent here twice a week,” Taksar said. “I don’t need a Banana Republic and a Gap around the corner from where I live.”
“It’s not my decision. It’s Campus Partners’,” Panagiotopoulus said. “It’s OSU and the city of Columbus. They’re Campus Partners.”
Panagiotopoulus said she is angry because Campus Partners would not let her remain open for a few days past Jan. 31.
“What would it hurt (Campus Partners) if I stay open three days more? I could use the money for my new shop,” she said. “It’s not like they’re going to tear down the building that weekend.”
Demolition is scheduled for March or April.
“I’m not going to leave,” Panagiotopoulus said. “What are they going to do – come in here and arrest me?”
