So long, Papa Joe’s

Eron Ben-Yehuda

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Papa Joe’s Pizza, a Downtown hangout since 1989, will

be torn down now that the building’s owners have agreed to lease the land

to a developer that plans to build a multimillion-dollar hotel,

restaurant and retail complex on it.

The prospect of losing her business after 11 years frustrates owner

Jennifer Song.

“It seems like I have no future,” she said.

Even the property owner has mixed emotions.

“I’m going to be really sad to see those buildings come down,” said Frank

Cracchiolo, who has owned the property on the 500 block of Pacific Coast

Highway for more than 20 years.

But time marches on and so does progress, Cracchiolo said.

“You can only hold off on something for so long,” he said.

By signing a 99-year lease last week, Cracchiolo and son Sal, who co-owns

the building, became the first private property holders to join CIM

Group’s effort to make over a two block area bounded by Main Street,

Walnut Avenue, 6th Street and Pacific Coast Highway. Plans for the site

include a 130-room hotel, 135,000 square feet of retail and restaurant

space, and about 400 mostly underground parking spaces.

The city gave two of the three acres that make up the project area to the

Los Angeles-based developer as part of a redevelopment agreement.

But CIM still has a fight on its hand. The developer must contend with

six property owners who have refused overtures to make a deal, insisting

that they develop their property themselves.

Asked if negotiations with the six have started, the developer’s senior

vice president, John Given, responded, “We’re trying to.”

Nevertheless, bringing Papa Joe’s into the fold is a big step forward.

The property stands on the spot where CIM plans to build the project’s

centerpiece, the hotel.

The developer, though, downplays its significance.

“It’s just one step along the way, but it’s a good one,” he said.

The city still must approve the lease, but that’s little more than a

formality, said David Biggs, the city’s economic development director.

The wrecking ball could start swinging as early as four months from now,

he added.

Song said she hasn’t received any notice of eviction from the landlord

yet, but she knows the day will come when she must leave.

“I have no choice,” she said. “I’m really kind of scared.”

Twenty years down the road, the lease gives CIM the option of negotiating

a buyout, but Cracchiolo said he won’t budge.

“I would never sell that property,” he said.

Although the building will disappear, its colorful history should not be

forgotten.

In back of the pizza joint, there’s a small house and a garage that was

used during World War II as an army barrack by soldiers manning machine

guns at the end of the pier, Cracchiolo said.

In 1993, a candy store opened there, which turned into the Boogie Woogie

Malt and Sandwich Shop. That lasted until the 1960s, local historian

Jerry Person said. The name stuck, and, to this day, the building’s

canopy still says Boogie Woogie. Song opened her shop in 1989. Papa Joe’s is named for the owner of a Sunset Beach pizza joint she bought in 1984,

which has since been closed.

Sal Cracchiolo, Frank’s son, knows customers will miss enjoying a slice

of pizza while hanging out at the beach.

“You’re always welcome here,” said Kevin Fuentes, 22, of Fullerton, as he

played video games Monday while his friend ate a salad.

It’s hard to beat having a good meal while looking out at the beautiful

blue ocean, said Alex Arellano, 21.

“Papa Joe’s is ‘The Bomb,”’ he said.