A longtime downtown Naperville hangout has re-opened.

The Lantern, 8 W. Chicago Ave., opened its doors Tuesday after a three-month hiatus while ownership changed hands within the Feldott family that has run it for decades.

Manager Brenda Heiss said owner Don Feldott gave the bar a facelift over the past several months with maintenance and cleaning as well as installing new coolers and fixing the keg system.

“We wanted to keep it the same type of tavern atmosphere it’s had since 1966 in the family,” Heiss said. “We didn’t want to make too many changes.”

Heiss said she is “elated” to see the bar reopen and has enjoyed watching regulars catch up with each other.

Sara Connelly is among the regulars happy to be back in the bar she says has the “best Bloody Marys in town.” Connelly said she likes the low-key, comfortable atmosphere at The Lantern.

“This is a staple for the community,” she said. “’It’s our landmark. Everybody knows The Lantern. It was missed for sure.”

The reopening came just days after 24-year-old teacher Shaun Wild was fatally stabbed at a neighboring bar. Heiss, who has worked at The Lantern for 17 years, said she knew Wild as a customer and was “in shock” over his death. Friends of Wild, she said, were at the bar when it reopened sharing stories about him.

“I’m very very sad for everybody, especially the families,” she said. “He was a really really nice guy.”