Durbin's Owner To Take Over Teehan's

TINLEY PARK, IL — Plans are in place to keep a beloved downtown Tinley Park bar up and running.

Tinley Park officials on Tuesday approved a lease agreement stating that Durbin's Pizza owner Tom McAuliffe will take over Teehan's Tavern starting Oct. 1, after the retirement of longtime owner Regis Teehan. Details of the lease note a six-month term, ending on April 1, 2024.

He's also been tapped to remain on and run the business once it's been rebuilt, Village Manager Pat Carr confirmed. Officials on Tuesday also signed off on a liquor license under Teehan's H.S. LLC for the business. A Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for the future, rebuilt bar was previously issued by the Village, Carr said. Teehan's H.S. (Harmony Square) LLC was the sole applicant. The Village then decided on a short-term lease in the interim.

After news last month of the Village of Tinley Park's pending acquisition of rights to the Teehan's bar name for $200,000, Teehan cited her pending retirement as the reason behind the decision. Teehan has served in the role for 34 years, at the bar that has been in her family since 1917. The bar will continue operating after her retirement, she stressed last month, and her staff will stay on in the transition.

"No one is losing their jobs, and no one is losing their tavern," Teehan said in a release last month. "For now, the only real difference is that, come October 1st, I will be retired. I don't think any of the big changes will come until later."

The Village plans to demolish the 171-year-old building at 17329 S. Oak Park Ave. by year's end, with plans to build anew and keep the Teehan's name alive. Teehan said the Village, which purchased the property in May 2023, intends to essentially replicate the building — with some modernizations — on the same property and lease it along with the Teehan's Tavern name to a new operator. According to plans released by the Village in March 2023, the business will serve as an anchor for the village's forthcoming Harmony Square, a 1.6-acre mixed use public space.

McAuliffe previously operated a Durbin's location a block away from Teehan's for nearly 20 years; that location closed in March 2022 due to a rent dispute with the building's owner. Durbin's Express currently operates in Tinley Park, at 18250 S. Oak Park Ave. Other locations include Evergreen Park, Palos Hills, Burbank, and Midlothian.

Teehan noted last month that she will be hands-off following her retirement, but reassured supporters that the Village has shared some of their plans for preservation with her, and she feels optimistic about this next chapter in her family’s tavern.

"Everyone I’ve talked with from the Village has made me feel confident that the Teehan’s legacy will be honored in the reconstruction and reopening," Teehan said.

"This bar is like a member of my family. It was my great-grandfather who bought it in 1917. After him, it was Grandma who ran it, then my father. When it came to me in 1989, I was ready to carry the torch, and now I’m ready to pass it.

"Teehan’s has been a part of Tinley Park for over a century. Our tiny farm town has grown a great deal since those days — even since I took over the business — but the heart of Tinley Park remains situated on Oak Park Avenue, and I’m happy to know that the new owners and management understand and respect the role my family’s tavern has played in Tinley Park for all of these years."