For months now, Papa Dan’s Pizza and Pasta, located in Palm Desert, California, has been posting the same caption on its social media photos: “Unfortunately, due to a fire, we are currently closed and searching for a new location.”
But as owner Ira Mosley has struggled to find the funds to re-open his pizzeria, which dates back to 1984, help might be on the way from the Palm Desert City Council.
More than 11 months ago—on April 14, 2024, to be specific—the pizzeria went down in flames, along with three other businesses. The conflagration was so massive, it required 16 fire engines and 60 firefighters to put it out.
“I just saw 40 years go up in smoke, but, you know, it is what it is,” Mosley told The Desert Sun at the time. “Nobody was in there, and nobody got hurt.”
Mosley had hoped to relocate the business to a nearby space and reopen last fall, but that hasn’t happened. He might be edging closer now, though, thanks to a move by the local city council.
As NBC Palm Springs reports, city council members voted to conditionally grant $200,000 to Papa Dan’s through the city’s Business Enhancement Program. The conditions require Papa Dan’s to open by July 1 and to stay in business for at least five years. Otherwise, $100,000 of the grant money must be repaid to the city.
Other conditions for the grant: Mosley must hire Palm Desert-based contractors and employ about 40 fulltime workers, thus providing a jolt for the local economy.
Jill Marie Plaza, Palm Desert’s tax administrator, explained the reasoning behind the grant: “Papa Dan’s is practically a landmark….Anytime you create or retain jobs in a city, that’s an investment in the future.”
