(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Several Southern Colorado small businesses are now facing the question of what’s next as they learned through a note in the mail that the convenience store chain QuikTrip is taking over the Polo Center.

“We heard rumors a while ago, but never got any official word from the leasing company, like ever,” said Eyewear Repair of Colorado owner, Peter Benedict. “The first official thing we got was a letter from QuikTrip saying, ‘this is our place now’.”

Tan Phat is another one of the businesses in this shopping center that received the same note.

“I got handed a note that we had to move out by the end of January but after contacted them, they extend it to the end of March,” said My Pham, Owner of Tan Phat.

For Pham, he began cooking up Vietnamese style food with his wife back in October of 2013. Since then, they have been welcoming customers, and along the way, some turned into loyal lovers of the pho.

“These two gentlemen here, they’ve been here for like at least six/seven years that I know them,” Pham said. “Some of them become good friends.”

My Pham talked to two customers who have been coming to eat at his restaurant for several years.

Along with these gentlemen grabbing a bite to eat, was another group of eaters, one of which was 8-year-old Ahmias Thorntorn. When asked how long they had been coming to the restaurant, Thorntorn said, “My whole life.”

Tears filled the eyes of Pham when he shared the difficulty in finding a new location in this growing city and starting all over again.

“I don’t know if it will succeed again or not,” Pham said.

One 8-year-old enjoyed a bowl of pho for lunch time and shared how incredible the food tasted.

For the past five years, Benedict said he has been helping Southern Colorado customers with their eyewear repair needs. When looking back on the time spent in the building, he shared while the location was convenient, there have been some troubles with management.

“I always thought it was a great spot,” Benedict said. “I thought it was easy for people to find. I thought it was a great spot for local businesses and it’s a shame because… this location could have done a lot more business, but it was such a horrible leasing company. Like people would come and be like, ‘Hey, I’ve been trying to talk to these people about opening a shop in that building. I just can’t get anybody to return a phone call.”

Another small business impacted is Ramsel’s Watch Repair, which expressed their appreciation for loyal customers keeping the store afloat for so many years. They shared they are looking for other options to keep the business running and to give them a call (719- 597-6704) for more details.

As cars filled the lot around lunch time on Thursday, people of all ages were stepping foot into House of Yakitori II. The owner, Reilly Fetter, was found in the kitchen, cooking up some sizzling meals for customers.

“I would say the lunch special, it’s probably the most famous dish,” Fetter said. ” You get two sticks of chicken, rice, salad, onion rings and a soup. Not for a bad price, buy a box about eight bucks and we try to keep it, as low, as affordable as we can.”

A lunch rush was well underway at House of Yakitori II with chicken being cooked on the grill top.

Also found in the kitchen is Fetter’s father, who was breading each onion ring by hand.

“There’s just a lot of family history here,” Fetter said. “My grandmother was here before she passed on. My parents are getting ready to retire and so it’s kind of up to me moving in as the third generation of this restaurant.”

In the kitchen, father and son both working away to make sure customers were satisfied with their meal.

In taking the torch of running the business, Fetter reflected on what the future now holds in having to open their doors in a new location.

“I mean, we kind of got ahead of it,” Fetter said. “We actually found a new location up north, and it’s kind of sad because we have to move out of this area, which we have a lot of our people that come in, a lot of customers that live in this area or even down south.”

Their new location, according to Fetter, will be at 1829 Briargate Boulevard.

Several businesses in the Polo Center were officially informed by QuikTrip that they could no longer continue business in the center.

Many of these storefronts will be in business until the end of March, meaning there is still time for the community to support them.

QuikTrip did provide a statement to FOX21 regarding plans for construction in the new year.

“QuikTrip is excited and looks forward to beginning construction on two additional store locations in Colorado Springs in 2024,” said QuikTrip’s Corporate Communication’s Manager, Aisha Jefferson. “It is a hallmark of our brand to be a good neighbor in every community we serve, and we look forward to continuing that commitment to excellence in Colorado Springs.”