Wednesday, September 14, 2016
By Kalea Hall
YOUNGSTOWN
The Fifth Floor was bustling Tuesday night with patrons grabbing dinner before they attended the Bryan Adams concert at the Covelli Centre.
But these busy nights aren’t a constant, which is why owner George Guarnieri decided to shutter the downtown restaurant in the Commerce Building, 201 E. Commerce St.
“We are leaving at the end of the month,” Guarnieri said inside his kitchen at the Fifth Floor.
The last day of business will be Sept. 28.
“I’m very sorry to hear the news,” said Mayor John A. McNally. Owner “George [Guarnieri] and his family worked a lot and spent a lot of money to update the restaurant. It goes to show how tough it is to run a restaurant these days.”
Records from Mahoning County Common Pleas Court outline financial problems for the restaurant.
One Ohio Corp., owner of the Commerce Building, filed a civil complaint against the Fifth Floor, citing unpaid rent, security and water bills.
The complaint, filed Aug. 30, states the Fifth Floor had not paid rent since April 2016 and owes $25,140.41 to One Ohio Corp. It also states the Fifth Floor failed to pay for additional security and owes $7,704.65 for those services, and owes $2,269.48 for unpaid water services.
One Ohio Corp. sought a temporary restraining order against the Fifth Floor for a short duration “for protection while the parties are preparing for a preliminary injunction hearing.”
Judge Maureen A. Sweeney granted a restraining order in an Aug. 31 filing preventing the Fifth Floor from operating during certain hours.
But Sept. 2, the restraining order was dissolved by the judge. A preliminary injunction hearing scheduled for Sept. 20 has been canceled.
Guarnieri said the matter has been resolved.
The Fifth Floor opened in the spring of 2015 with both formal and casual dining areas and a tapas wine bar in the middle, according to Vindicator files.
The classy space that invites guests in with a painting of the Youngstown city skyline is the former home of the Youngstown Club.
The club, which ceased operations in 2012, operated for more than 100 years as a host to the city’s politicians, business people and the elite. The club moved to different buildings, but settled at the Commerce Building location in 1989.
Guarnieri sold the Belleria Pizza restaurant he owned on Youngstown-Poland Road in Struthers and purchased the liquor license from the Ohio One Corp. to operate the former club space in 2014, according to Vindicator files.