THE MALDEN ADVOCATE – Friday, March 16, 2018

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Have a Happy St. Patrick’s Day H

Vol. 20, No. 11

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Friday, March 16, 2018

Pisa Pizza shares a recipe for success By Barbara Taormina hen Joe Crowley opened Pisa Pizza back in 1993, he knew exactly where he was heading. With a business degree in his pocket and $5,000 in the bank, Crowley, who was then 23, wanted to run a restaurant that served the kind of food that people remembered and came back for. But he also wanted a place that would be part and parcel of Malden, a restaurant that would be part of the community. And the plan worked. According to conventional wisdom, most small restaurants fail within a year. But recent market research shows that notion is flawed, and small restauranteurs usually go out of business after three years. This year Pisa Pizza is celebrating 25 years in business, and Crowley seems ready for 25 more. “There have been so many relationships I’ve formed over the years,� said Crowley, who sat down for an interview in his office at Breakaway, a Danvers restaurant and nightclub that he opened in 2016. “We now have three generations of families coming into

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Pisa Pizza. To see that develop has been amazing,� he said. Crowley launched Pisa Pizza on Highland Avenue before moving to the restaurant’s current Pearl Street location in 2003. And the early days were not easy. “We leased everything, including the mop bucket,� he said with a laugh. “But I enjoyed it, I felt I could do it on my own.� He remembers 15-hour days and months that went by without a day off. “It’s the type of business that you either love it or you don’t go near it,� he said. “You have to be all in.� Crowley had the commitment. He also had a stack of recipes he developed with the help of a regional supplier for the restaurant industry. But he had something else that was a little ahead of the times. “The first thing we did was jump into being part of the community with things like sponsorships and fundraisers,� he said. “If there was a need in the community, we really tried to help.� Over the years Pisa Pizza has helped local sports teams, schools, civic organizations and community groups raise much-needed cash with fundraisers, sponsorships and do-

HAPPY 25 YEARS: The Crowley family, owners Cheryl and Joe, with family, friends and employees, along with Mayor Gary Christenson and Councillor Steve Ultrino during an anniversary.

nations. Crowley disappeared for a few minutes during his interview with The Advocate so he could talk to a couple who recently lost a young child about a memorial fundraiser. “Every time, and I mean every time, we have contacted Joe Crowley about food for a meeting or event, Pisa Pizza has been there,� said Patty Kelly, Outreach Coordinator for Housing Families. “We have an annual holi-

day party with all of our families and children, and Pisa Pizza supplies 90 pizzas for that event,� said Kelly, adding that Crowley always carries in the food and stops to chat with families. But for Kelly, it’s not just about the food, which she said is delicious. “With Pisa Pizza, it’s about the spirit of community,� she said. “I wish them a lot more success, way more than 25 years.�

For Crowley, developing those types of community ties came naturally in part because of the support he received as a small business owner in the city. “Malden embraced us from day one,� he said. “The city couldn’t have been better to us. We were pro-community and pro-giving and that really was the key to our growth.� Crowley said that since Pisa

SUCCESS | SEE PAGE 10

City Council rejects new height limits for downtown By Barbara Taormina

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he City Council clashed recently over height restrictions for residential buildings in downtown Malden and brought the city’s divided views on development into sharper focus. Ward 5 Councillor Barbara Murphy asked fellow councillors to consider a six-story height limit for multifamily buildings in downtown Malden even though the height

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limit failed to win the Planning Board’s endorsement last December. Malden currently allows residential buildings up to 12 stories in the downtown business district with a special permit from the City Council. “My goal was to walk out of there with anything more than six stories excluded,� said Murphy. I did what I thought I had to do; I brought forth something I thought reflected what Malden residents have said they want.� Murphy referred to results of the moratorium survey that showed nearly 76 percent of the 2,000 residents who responded favored a six-story height limit for multifamily developments in downtown Malden. She mentioned the multiple community forums, neighborhood meetings and ca-

sual coffee shop conversations where concerns about overdevelopment have flourished. People talk about height, but they talk more about traffic, limited parking, crowded classrooms and scarce green space. “Our residents want to see the building stop,� said Murphy. “It’s overwhelming; it’s just too much.� Still, Murphy acknowledged that there are people who want to see the downtown development continue to foster the revitalization of Malden Square. Both residents and city leaders have argued that residential development ushers in businesses, shops, restaurants, theaters and galleries which would make downtown Malden a hot spot for residents and a destination

for visitors. Ward 4 Councillor Ryan O’Malley and Councillor-atLarge Stephen Winslow and Council President Debbie DeMaria voted against the six-story limit for fear that it could potentially block projects that would benefit the community. A super majority vote was needed in order to adopt the change. Winslow was especially concerned that the height restric tion might limit chances to bring new senior housing developments to downtown Malden. According to Winslow, seniors prefer tower-style apartment buildings because they create a sense of cohesion and community among residents. O’Malley said the pro-

DOWNTOWN | SEE PAGE 9

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