PHOTO BY HOLLY WHISLER
July 27 will be the last day of operations for Coz's Pizza and Pub at 4441 Ash Grove Drive.
The owners of Coz's Pizza and Pub and the longtime property owner are embroiled in a legal dispute, which appears to have led to the announcement that July 27 will be the last day of operations for the business at its current location.
Louis and Elsa Ezzo purchased Coz's Pizza and Pub in March 2023, but both the business and the real estate already had a long history. John Costello started Coz's Pizza in 1996 and it initially operated out of a small location in Curran. In 2000, he moved the business to the current location at 4441 Ash Grove Drive, just as the Pleasant Park commercial development was getting underway. It allowed Costello to expand from a 400-square-foot building to nearly 4,000 square feet.
Costello sold Coz's Pizza in 2009 and has pursued several other business ventures since, including a frozen pizza line and another restaurant, JT Costelloe's Pizza Pub Grill, in Piper Glen.
The real estate also changed hands in 2009 and was purchased by JB & RC Properties LLC for $475,000, according to Sangamon County tax records. The limited liability company is managed by Springfield resident Roger Chandler.
When the Ezzos purchased the business, they also signed a contract for deed to purchase the real estate for $550,000. Under the terms of the contract, the couple was required to make monthly payments of $4,883 for a period of two years, with the remaining balance due in full Jan. 1, 2025.
According to a breach of contract suit filed Feb. 6 in Sangamon County by Chandler, the Ezzos made monthly payments in full through September 2023. However, Chandler alleges that each month since, he has only received partial payments or sometimes no payment at all. He also alleges that the Ezzos defaulted on a $50,000 promissory note that was part of a membership interest purchase agreement for J&J Operations LLC, the limited liability company that operates the restaurant. In the court filing, Chandler requests a judgement for monetary damages and possession of the real estate.
The Ezzos filed a motion to dismiss March 18, alleging that "the plaintiff does not have legal capacity to sue." Chandler's company that entered into the agreement with the Ezzos, JB & RC Properties, LLC, was involuntary dissolved July 8, 2022, which generally relates to a failure to file annual paperwork with the Illinois Secretary of State. Since the dissolution took place prior to entering into the contract for deed, the Ezzos claim that the breach of contract suit should be dismissed.
The Ezzos also seek dismissal of the claim regarding the promissory note, alleging that the original note that required payment in full by Jan. 1, 2025, was later amended by the parties to have a due date of Feb. 15, 2025, and so the claim filed Feb. 6 was premature and therefore invalid.
Numerous court filings by both parties have occurred since. On March 31, Chandler filed an amended complaint "in an attempt to avoid unnecessary arguments relating to the defenses raised by defendants Louis Ezzo and Elsa Ezzo... and in an attempt to avoid potential gamesmanship by the defendants relating to a scheduled eviction of occupants..."
The Ezzos have filed various motions to dismiss, generally focusing on technicalities such as having the wrong version of the promissory note attached as an exhibit in court filings or arguing that there are "other actions pending between the same parties for the same cause." Chandler responded with a May 28 "motion to consolidate" court filing "to avoid any duplicative litigation as argued to exist by the defendants." Judge Gail Noll signed an agreed order for the motion to consolidate on June 25.
The case continues to make its way through the court system, but in the meantime a July 24 social media post from Coz's Pizza stated that Sunday would be the "final day at this location." The post thanked the customers and staff and said, "While this chapter is coming to a close, a new one is just beginning," encouraging customers to watch for announcements of a a new location and reopening details.
The owners did not respond to an interview request from
SBJ regarding future plans.