One of our favorite restaurants won't be reopening anytime soon in downtown Pasco as talks between the City and Havana Cafe are still underway.

The Havana Cafe posted on their Facebook page that they won't reopen their Pasco location but word is from the City of Pasco's Mike Gonzalez, Economic Development Manager that owner Leo Morales has agreed to stay in Pasco an additional 90 days to resolve some of the current building issues with Havana Cafe.

Havana Cafe, located on Lewis Street in Pasco is known for a wide array of fresh food like ropa vieja, palomillo al grill, cuban sandwich, empanadas, pollo en salsa, carnes con papas, lechon asado and camarones.

Here is the original posting from the Havana Cafe

Unfortunately, after nearly 2 months of trying to make a deal with the city of Pasco, we will NOT be reopening the restaurant at this location. We are starting the process of looking for something available in Kennewick or Richland.

As you know with every story, there are two sides, and the City of Pasco issued a statement on what concerns the city has with the property that the Havana Cafe occupies.

Here are is part of the statement from the City of Pasco's Mike Gonzalez:

Leo has never been forced to close. The issue has been, he wants to operate in a space, that requires the building to have sprinklers because of its size. He can currently operate as a restaurant without those sprinklers in place if he doesn’t use the entire building.  But he has chosen not to do that.

To be clear, he could open his doors anytime.

We absolutely love Leo Morales and his food. The City of Pasco wants him to stay in downtown Pasco for years to come. The City Council is looking into every possible solution so he can stay here. Our City Manager Dave Zabell has personally visited with Mr. Morales at the restaurant on several occasions to figure out a solution.

Gonzalez ended his comments with this statement: "We continue to work with him on his sprinkler issues and hope to have them resolved soon."

At this time, Havana Cafe could operate within their specified space but any expansion would be dependent on installing a sprinkler system.

The Havana Cafe Food Truck in Richland will stay open while the owners of the Havana Cafe and the City of Pasco come to an agreement.

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