Clyde's has been a staple of the Columbia lakefront for more than 30 years, which is why Tom Meyer says the location is long overdue for a makeover.

Meyer, president of Clyde's Restaurant Group, told Patch the restaurant will be on a new lease and will see several changes from renovations starting in late January.

"It has been over 25 years since we were able to renovate the place, and we just needed to do it," Meyer said.

The specifics of the renovation have not been finalized, but he gave a hint at what changes are coming.

"Basically, we're going to completely redo the men's and women's rooms, we're going to do some work behind the scenes in the kitchen and the floors," Meyer said. "It's going to be very fresh and nice when we re-open."

According to Meyer, most of the changes are simply aesthetic, as opposed to an extensive structural renovation. He anticipates the job will take a couple months, during which the restaurant will be closed.

The Howard Hughes Corporation, which owns the Teacher's Building where Clyde's is located, could also be looking to renovate the entire first floor for increased retail space, reports the Baltimore Sun. This comes in addition to the announcement of Whole Foods deciding to occupy the Rouse Company building, right across from Clyde's.

"The more quality properties, the more you can direct traffic into the area. It's wonderful," Meyer said of the addition.

Meyer could not give specifics about the new lease, but he said they were not able to agree on a 20-year lease. He said he is aware of possible changes to the lakefront, but he does not know about specific plans for the building.

"Obviously, it's not a secret they have other plans for the lakefront, but it's not imminent. It's not going to happen in the next year or two–that I can probably say for sure," Meyer said.

Clyde's settled in its current Columbia location in 1975, and was only the second Clyde's to open, after the original started in Georgetown. Now, the group has more than a dozen restaurants in the greater Washington, DC area, but the Columbia scenery remains one of Meyer's favorites.

"Opening in Columbia, people thought we were crazy to do it, back in the '70s," Meyer said. "But you can see we've had a very long, wonderful relationship with the Columbia Association, all the people in Columbia and the Rouse Company."

This article was updated to say Meyer did not release specific information about the new lease and renovations at Clyde's.

For more news about the Columbia lakefront, follow these links:

Whole Foods To Locate in Downtown Columbia

Downtown Columbia Residents Want Cameras, Safety

Ulman Wants 'Bustling, Vibrant Streetscape' for Downtown Columbia

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