Pagliai’s Pizza building put on the market

IOWA CITY — Pagliai’s Pizza in Iowa City will stay put for now, despite its building being put on the market.

The 1877 building at 302 E. Bloomington St. was listed at an asking price of $5 million in late September. Operations for the local pizza staple are expected to continue under lease for seven more years, Pagliai’s owner Antonio Fontanini told The Daily Iowan.

The building has been in owner Gary Skarda’s family since 1878. It was built by Joseph Slezak, his great-great-grandfather. Skarda told the Daily Iowan that managing the building has gotten more difficult with age.

The three-story property also is home to a laundromat and 16 apartments. Since being created as a dance hall by Slezak, who was a dancer, it has served as a hotel, grocery store and saloon. Pagliai’s Pizza opened there in 1957.

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