As other Ellicott City shops and restaurants celebrate their reopening Thursday night, the Rumor Mill Fusion Bar & Restaurant is among the businesses that will not return to Main Street.
Owners Lexi and Matthew Milani announced on the Rumor Mill's Facebook page this week that the spot would not reopen after July's historic flood ravaged the building.
"Without the assurance that we could be open by the holiday season, we must move forward," they wrote. "We will miss that building, where we have many fond memories of occasions that were important to us and to others, but most of all we will continue to miss our staff, our vendors and our guests — all of whom make up our Rumor Mill family."
Lexi Milani said in an interview that the Rumor Mill was along a section of Main Street hardest hit by the flood, and their landlord couldn't give them a solid timeframe for how long renovations might take.
"We literally had all our eggs in that basket," she said.
The Rumor Mill staff led all 47 patrons in the building to safety when they evacuated the restaurant at 8069 Tiber Alley the night of the flood, which killed two people and damaged homes and businesses. Flood waters reached more than 6 feet on the first floor of Rumor Mill.
Thursday marks the first time since the July flood that Ellicott City's historic Main Street will be opened to pedestrian and car traffic. Along the stretch, 27 businesses will be open, including The Wine Bin, Judge's Bench and Matcha Time Café.
The Milanis are looking for other locations and weighing their options regarding the Rumor Mill's future.
"We've actually looked at space in Ellicott City," Milani said.
But based on the scope of the damage to the lower section of Main Street, she said she would not be surprised if the Rumor Mill wasn't the only business that did not open again in its original location.
"My sense is that not everyone else will," she said.