Lake Bluff Brewing Company's last day at 16 East Scranton Avenue was its own annual Oktoberfest Block Party on Saturday, Sept. 12. The taproom had been open at that address since March 2011, so the village got one last block party out of a business that had been part of downtown for fifteen years.
Four weeks later, on Friday, Oct. 9, the Lake Bluff Farmers Market held its final morning of the 2026 season on the Village Green. The season had run from June 5. Those were the two most regular reasons to spend time downtown, one indoors and one outdoors, and both ended within a month. They also ended on a street the Village had just spent the spring rebuilding so more people would linger on it.
A street rebuilt for gathering
In April, the Village of Lake Bluff announced the Block 1 Streetscape Improvement Project. The $1 million job covers East Scranton Avenue between the train station and East Center Avenue/Walnut Avenue. The Village said it would widen sidewalks, add festoon lighting and create more gathering spaces. Construction was set for April 15 through June 4, and the Village said its goal was to finish before the first Farmers Market.
The heavy work happened on schedule. Crews removed pavement on May 27 and repaved on May 28. In its May 26 notice, the Village said it didn't plan any more major disruptions to traffic, parking or business access after that. The same notice said the contractor was still waiting on deliveries of the festoon lighting poles, street furniture, planter pots and seat-wall materials. Those items and the plantings would go in once they arrived. The Village's project page hasn't posted an update since May 26.
So the street was ready for summer. The market filled the Village Green on Friday mornings, and the brewery kept doing what it had done for years. Then the brewery left.
What happened at 16 East Scranton
The Lake and McHenry County Scanner reported that owners Mike and Megan Dorneker's 15-year lease ran out earlier in 2026. The landlord chose not to renew and rented the space to another tenant. The owners told the Scanner they were "completely blindsided." No published report has named the new tenant.
The taproom hosted more than pints. Patch recounted the life events it held over the years, including weddings, graduations, baby showers, after-work gatherings and new home celebrations. That's the kind of use the Village had in mind when it described the streetscape as gathering space. For fifteen years, a private business had been providing it on East Scranton.
The owners want to stay in the village. On Oct. 1, the Lake Forest Journal reported that the Dornekers were actively looking for space in Lake Bluff. No new address or reopening timeline had been announced. The Journal said the owners are asking anyone with available space to contact [email protected]. The brewery's website still shows the 16 E. Scranton address and its old hours, so the site isn't a reliable signal that it has reopened anywhere.
Who carries the calendar until December
With the taproom closed and the market packed up, the next stretch of downtown gatherings comes mostly from community organizations rather than storefronts. Between now and the first weekend of December, the Park District, the History Museum and the Lake Bluff 250 committee, Grace United Methodist Church and the Chamber hold the dates.
- Boo Bash, Friday, Oct. 16, 6 to 7:30 p.m., Blair Park. The Lake Bluff Park District's Halloween evening includes trunk-or-treat, games, movies, pumpkins, a pet costume contest and candy. Registration is free.
- The Promise of Liberty, Thursday, Oct. 22, 7 to 9 p.m., Lake Forest High School. This free public presentation by historic-document expert Seth Kaller is part of the Lake Bluff America 250 Celebration, with the Lake Bluff History Museum. Advance reservations are required.
- Breakfast with Santa, Saturday, Dec. 5, 7 a.m. to noon, Grace United Methodist Church on East Center. Another Park District event. Tickets must be reserved in advance.
- It's a Wonderful Life in Lake Bluff, Saturday, Dec. 5, 3 to 5 p.m., downtown. The Chamber lists a holiday market on Scranton Avenue by the Village Green, holiday music, and the orbs lighting at 5 p.m.
- Holiday Home Tour, Sunday, Dec. 6. Hosted by the Lake Bluff History Museum.
The first two events in the list happen away from the rebuilt block. Boo Bash is at Blair Park, and the Seth Kaller talk is at Lake Forest High School. The holiday weekend is the first time this season that the calendar brings a crowd back to East Scranton itself.
Dec. 5 puts the rebuilt block to its first holiday test
Saturday, Dec. 5, fills a full day in a few blocks. Breakfast with Santa starts at 7 a.m. at Grace United Methodist Church and runs until noon. At 3 p.m., the holiday market opens on Scranton Avenue beside the Village Green, the stretch the Village rebuilt for $1 million this spring. Grace United Methodist also lists Christmas caroling on the Village Green that day as part of It's a Wonderful Life in Lake Bluff, leading into the lighting of the orbs on the green. The orbs go on at 5 p.m.
This will be the first holiday market on the new sidewalks, and the brewery's door on East Scranton will be dark for it. The Lake Bluff Style 250 calendar describes the event as a downtown holiday afternoon ending with the orbs on the Village Green. No public source yet says whether the festoon lights, seat walls and planters from the May notice are installed and in place for the evening.
The weekend ends the next day with the History Museum's Holiday Home Tour on Sunday, Dec. 6.
Still pouring and serving along East Scranton
Between events, the street isn't empty. The Lake Forest/Lake Bluff Chamber directory lists these businesses on East Scranton and around the corner on East Center:
- jdR Wine and Beer, 49 E. Scranton Ave. A wine, beer and spirits shop with a bar.
- Half and Half Pizza Co., 77 E. Scranton Ave. A pizza restaurant.
- Lake Bluff Hub and Cycle, 77 E. Scranton Ave. Listed among the Chamber's specialty retailers.
- Reverie Petit Cafe, 91 E. Scranton Ave. The café posts its current menu and hours on its website.
- Bluffington's Café, 113 E. Scranton Ave.
- Inovasi and The Otherdoor, 28 E. Center Ave. Both are listed at the same East Center address.
jdR is the one spot on this list that the Chamber describes as having a bar, so it's the place on East Scranton to order a beer. For a meal before the orbs lighting, Half and Half sits on the same street as the holiday market, and Inovasi and The Otherdoor are around the corner on East Center.
The open question on the block is still 16 East Scranton. The new tenant hasn't been named. The Dornekers are still looking for a Lake Bluff address, and as of the Lake Forest Journal's Oct. 1 report, they hadn't announced one.
Changes on East Scranton affect more than where to grab dinner. For homes within walking distance of the Village Green, what opens and closes downtown is part of the picture. If you'd like to talk about what that means for your own home, Sondra Douglass is happy to walk through it with you over coffee on Scranton. Request a Home Valuation whenever you're ready.
