Mason City council to consider agreements in attempt to save Suzie Q Restaurant building

MASON CITY — The City Council in Mason City tonight will consider approving a lease agreement as well as an asset purchase agreement for the Suzie Q Restaurant.

The restaurant which opened in 1949 at 14 2nd Northwest has been closed since a fire destroyed the adjacent Kirk Apartments building in April 2023. The restaurant building sits on a portion of the same lot where The Kirk once stood with the site leased from the Kirk owner. The restaurant’s water service was extended from The Kirk, and when the building was demolished, the water service was removed.

Attempts to find a new owner for the business who would keep the iconic diner in the downtown area have not been successful.

The city’s Historic Preservation Commission has met with the owner, who would like the commission to take ownership of the building, with the commission working to reestablish the utilities to the building and develop a request for proposals for the reuse of the restaurant.

The council will consider a proposal to lease the land under the Suzie Q from the new owner of the Kirk property, A2E3 Properties LLC. The lease would be for an initial one-year term with four annual yearly renewals through 2030, with rental payments of $250 a month, escalating in each year to a maximum of $400 a month in the final year.

The other item the council will consider is an asset purchase agreement with the holding company for the Suzie Q for $50,000, which would include all property, tangible property, as well as rights to all recipes, including the famous recipe for the Spic ‘n’ Span tenderloin.

The council meets tonight at 7 o’clock in the Mason City Room of the Public Library.