"I wanted to buy the Pantry because it's a piece of L.A. history,"
"Some of those employees have worked there for almost 50 years, I'd like for them to be able to finish out their careers in a place they love and made successful. I never actually considered buying it without them."
Leo Pustilnikov purchased the Original Pantry's nearly 8,000-square-foot building on James M. Wood Boulevard and an adjacent parking lot for $5.5 million. Unite Here Local 11 secured an agreement to preserve union representation and rehire all 25 workers who lost jobs when the diner closed in March. The Original Pantry had operated for more than 100 years before an abrupt closure by the Richard J. Riordan Trust following a labor dispute. Pustilnikov, a developer with properties across Los Angeles, plans to reopen the diner on New Year's Eve if permits and licenses are obtained. City and labor leaders and workers' families attended an outdoor ribbon-cutting event.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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