Third Street Pier restaurant and Edelweiss Cruise Lines, which have been fixtures on the Milwaukee River for nearly two decades, have ceased operations, OnMilwaukee.com has learned.

Hans Weissgerber III, the head of the Waterfront Entertainment Group, announced the closures in a memo to employees on Monday.

"It is with great regret that I must announce the permanent closure of Third Street PIer and Edelweiss Cruise Lines," Weissgerber said in the memo. "While we intended to operate our business through the end of 2006, our current economic situation simply does not allow us to continue. This situation will prevent us from proceeding with the Milwaukee River Club renovation project."

Third Street Pier is located at 1110 N. Old World 3rd St.

Weissgerber, whose group also operates Rip Tide and the Old German Beer Hall, could not be reached for comment. A phone call to the Waterfront Entertainment Group was not answered Monday evening.

There was no mention of the news on Waterfront's Web site -- wegmke.com. The site lists an invitation to Third Street Pier's Grand Finale, which was slated to be held on New Year's Eve. There is no word whether the party will still take place.

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