Fishtown venue must return $20K in deposits to couples jilted out of wedding site
Four couples who booked weddings at Skybox, which shut down unexpectedly, will recover their deposits. The business had been operating illegally, on an expired permit, and was shut down in April.
Four couples whose Fishtown wedding venue closed unexpectedly, leaving them scrambling to find a new location and out thousands of dollars, will recover their deposits, the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office announced Wednesday.
The operators of the venue known as Skybox in the 2400 block of East York Street will pay $20,250 to fully refund the couples. The business had been operating illegally, on an expired permit, and was shut down in April.
Under the settlement, Skybox owner Christos Aivazoglou, also known as Chris Voz, will also refund any eligible couples who file complaints in the next 30 days.
The settlement includes $2,500 spent by the Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
"Skybox accepted deposits and reservations from these Pennsylvania consumers — even though the business was operating illegally," Attorney General Josh Shapiro said in a statement. "When the venue was shut down, couples lost their deposit and were left scrambling to find a new wedding location."
Dana Pidliskey, 29, and Matt Chin, 31, were told they will get back the $3,000 they paid for a November 2018 wedding by the end of the month. They have since found another location in Kensington, and will put the refund toward the wedding.
"It was a little bit emotional, really," Pidliskey said. "But I'm just elated and happy. It feels like justice has kind of been served. We didn't know which direction it would take, but we had hope because we had so many resources helping us, so there's just relief and happiness."
Several people offered venues to the couples after the Inquirer and Daily News published their stories, including the Fraternal Order of Police and developer Bart Blatstein, who said he'd open up the Mansion Ballroom at the Showboat Hotel in Atlantic City free of charge to any stranded couple.
Attempts to immediately reach Voz were unsuccessful. His attorney, Jordan Rushie, said his client wanted to share his side of the story but didn't provide further information.
"Chris has made right with respect to putting money in escrow for anyone who felt they didn't get the services they were provided," Rushie said. "We're very much looking forward to making a statement and getting our facts out there."
Scott Janzen, one of the property owners, said Voz is no longer leasing the event space in the building, which has about 75 other tenants. The former Skybox will probably be leased as small office space, Janzen said.
Anyone affected should contact the Bureau of Consumer Protection at 800-441-2555 or email scams@attorneygeneral.gov to file a complaint by June 28.