Developer ousts Jack’s Pizza in Bay Terrace following dispute
Wishing everyone
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District Offices:
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.COM | DEC. 24 - DEC. 30, 2021 5
BY JENNA BAGCAL
A longtime Bay Terrace
pizza shop is closing its
doors after nearly 50 years
in business.
Earlier this month, it was
reported that Jack’s Pizza
and Pasta would be going out
of business amid a dispute
between the restaurant’s
owners and Cord Meyer, the
development company that
owns the Bay Terrace Shopping
Center where Jack’s is
located.
The owners of Jack’s
Pizza posted a sign outside
of the establishment at the
shopping center claiming
that Cord Meyer’s CEO Matthew
Whalen refused to renew
the restaurant’s lease,
effectively forcing them out
after decades of business.
The sign also stated that
Jack’s had stayed open “at
the height of the COVID pandemic.”
But Cord Meyer issued
a statement saying that the
restaurant’s lease had expired
in September 2020 and
they had failed to renew it.
“Their lease expired
in September 2020, but in
acknowledgment of their
long history, we agreed to
let them stay until the end
of 2021 and offered them
generous rent concessions.
We are disappointed that
our relationship with Jack’s
has been mischaracterized.
If a tenant refuses to meet
agreed-upon obligations,
we need to focus on ensuring
that the Bay Terrace
remains a vibrant shopping
center,” said a Cord Meyer
spokesperson.
Laura, the daughter of
Anna and Jack Sapienza
who opened the business
in 1972, told Patch that finances
were tight when they
ran a takeout-only operation
during the pandemic. During
that time, Laura claimed
that the Sapienzas paid
Cord Meyer “as much as we
could” from March through
December 2020 but had their
rent check returned in January
2021 followed by a 30-day
eviction notice.
Several reports claimed
that the owners of the pizzeria
were planning to pay
back Cord Meyer for the
missing rent, which the
company allegedly approved
during COVID.
Cord Meyer said that they
will allow Jack’s Pizza to
stay in its current location
until Jan. 15 before shutting
down the operation for good.
In the midst of the tenant
landlord feud, Maspethbased
restaurant Rosa Pizza
announced via Instagram
that it will open a shop at the
Bay Terrace, which the owners
of Jack’s Pizza told Patch
was the plan all along.
But Cord Meyer reportedly
said that the company
is “not currently discussing
prospective tenants,” despite
closing down Jack’s Pizza.
Reach reporter
Jenna Bagcal by e-mail at
jbagcal@schnepsmedia.com
or by phone at (718) 260-2583.
Jack’s Pizza & Pasta at the Bay Terrace Shopping Center. Photo via Google Maps
159-53 102nd Street
Howard Beach, NY 11414
(718) 738-1111
(718) 322-5760 FAX
66-85 73rd Place
Middle Village, NY 11379
(718) 497-1630
(718) 497-1761 FAX
Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr.
New York State Senator
District 15
Wishing everybody a healthy and
safe holiday season.
Merry Christmas,
Happy Kwanzaa and HappyNewYear.
Congresswoman
Grace Meng
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