New Haven Pizza Co. closes up shop in Stateway Plaza

In business since July, the New Haven Pizza Co. is no more.

Brothers Jason M. and William J. Gittings announced on their website that they closed the brick-oven pizza shop in Stateway Plaza, 1222 Arsenal St., on Saturday.

“Due to the economy in upstate New York, we simply cannot afford to continue doing business,” they wrote on the website.

The brothers had received a $29,000 loan from the Watertown Local Development Corp. soon after opening the business last summer. They were awarded the five-year, 5 percent loan after they explained to the board some discrepancies in their business plan and projected income.

Donald W. Rutherford, the WLDC’s CEO, said Tuesday that the owners are obligated to pay back the loan. The WLDC, also known as the Watertown Trust, will take legal action to obtain and then sell the pizzeria’s restaurant equipment because it had collateral on it, he said.