YOUNGSTOWN — Saying the stalled Chill-Can project developer failed to live up to its many promises, the city filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit seeking at least $2.8 million, and to possibly seize its property and buildings.

Attorneys from the Manchester Newman & Bennett law firm, hired by the city, filed the lawsuit Thursday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court against M.J. Joseph Development Corp.

Knowing the lawsuit was coming, M.J. Joseph and its sister company, Joseph Manufacturing Co. Inc., run by Mitchell Joseph, filed a May 24 lawsuit against the city to stop it from reclaiming a $1.5 million grant, the property and the buildings on the East Side.

The city also filed a motion Thursday to have the Joseph lawsuit dismissed with Judge R. Scott Krichbaum, who is assigned to the cases.

In a March 29 certified letter, the city informed Joseph he had 60 days to construct a number of buildings and hire about 150 workers or it would file a lawsuit. The city followed through Thursday with the lawsuit that was postponed because of the Joseph legal action.

The city lawsuit not only seeks to get back $1.5 million in water and wastewater funds given to the companies, but it seeks other money.

The lawsuit wants $414,948.09 it spent on acquiring 15 properties it bought for the project, which also include relocation expenses. It also lists $318,532.71 in demolition and abatement costs and an estimated $575,000 loss and counting in income tax revenue from the project’s failure.

“The city has seen zero or minimal permanent full-time employees created and there is not even one fully completed building,” according to the city’s lawsuit.

There are three buildings at the Chill-Can site, but the lawsuit states they are just “shells” that “are believed to be incomplete.” City records from earlier this year listed two employees at the property.

The business was to have employed 150 by now and eventually 237.

“Unfortunately, M.J. Joseph Development has again proven unable to honor its commitments,” the city lawsuit reads. “The efforts have fallen woefully behind schedule and ultimately M.J. Joseph Development has fallen way below promised performance both in terms of development and hiring of the promised permanent full-time employees” and other “contractual obligations.”

The city lawsuit also seeks a permanent injunction to stop Joseph from transferring, disposing of, or mortgaging assets to “protect the city until full damages are recovered” for “the material breaches of” contracts.

City Law Director Jeff Limbian said Brian Kopp, Joseph’s attorney, offered $250,000 to the city May 19 for supposed lost income tax under the condition the city not hold the company to a timeline. Limbian said the city refused the offer.

In the Joseph lawsuit, Kopp wrote: “The project encountered construction delays for a myriad of reasons that are known to the defendant city. Through 2020 and into 2021, plaintiff, Joseph Development, faced unforeseeable consequences as a result of the global restrictions and shutdowns from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Kopp said the company plans to develop the project, and that the company had borrowed more than $4 million for it.

Joseph had said the project, which broke ground in November 2016, would cost about $18.8 million and be in full operation by 2018 — well before the pandemic occurred — to produce the world’s only self-chilling beverage can.

In response to the Joseph lawsuit, the city wrote: “M.J. Joseph Development filed a baseless declaratory judgment action against the city that mischaracterizes the issues and attempts to distract from the fact that M.J. Joseph Development is in clear breach of its obligations.”