Blimpy Burger searching for new location after U of M buys building

The passage of right-to-work legislation in the state House and Senate may have Lansing in turmoil, but residents of Ann Arbor learned yesterday of  a more immediate concern.

Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger, a staple for U of M students and townies alike, is looking for a new home.

AnnArbor.com has more:

Owner Rich Magner said a deal between the University of Michigan and the property’s owner, Patricia Shafer, means he will have to close Blimpy Burger in summer 2013. He wants to find a new location for the restaurant.

Shafer is the widow of Blimpy Burger's original founder, Jim Shafer.

“I don’t know what the plans are,” Magner said. “But basically, in a nutshell, we will be able to operate in this location into summer 2013 and we will be trying to put a deal together and look for a new location.”

Magner said the University made Shafer an offer "she couldn't refuse."

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Credit blimpyburger.com

The menu.

Blimpy Burger has been serving customers its heaping stacks of beef since 1953.

A look at the menu, shows the array of heart-stopping sandwich options on offer.

Where else can you get a "quintuple" with a fried egg and salami?

When AnnArbor.com asked Magner why Blimpy Burger was such a hit, he got straight to the point:

"The burgers are really good."

Ann Arbor mayor John Hieftje was saddened by the news:

"I would hope particularly that Blimpy Burger, which is kind of an icon in the community and something I've been going to since I was a teenager … I would hope they could reopen somewhere, but I'd really miss them on that corner."

- Jordan Wyant, Michigan Radio Newsroom