Ken Boxer’s cell phone has been ringing nonstop during the past month. And because he never knows if the call is coming to his personal number or for the Italian restaurant he’s operated the past 17 years in Santa Barbara, he always answers as “Palazzio.”

That’s because all calls to his restaurant at 1026 State St. have forwarded to his cell phone since Palazzio closed a month ago for what was supposed to be routine renovation.

“Right now there’s not a hammer or screwdriver or anything happening,” Boxer told Noozhawk last week.

Work came to a halt late last month when the company Boxer hired to redo the restaurant’s kitchen floor — something he has done every few years — ran into some water issues affecting the foundation.

Crews noticed water damage underneath the flooring, a problem that likely didn’t develop overnight.

But after putting $20,000 into the mess of tearing out the floor, Boxer said the problem that was uncovered will cost about another $250,000 to fix.

So begins his efforts to figure out who will pay for repairs — Boxer, who leases the property, his landlord or an insurance company.

“We’re all trying to figure out how we can get this all taken care of,” he said. “We’re not settled yet as to who’s responsible. It’s just a slow, slow process.”

Meanwhile, Boxer has been forced to turn away holiday parties, catering gigs and more business than he’d like to calculate.

Palazzio has called State Street home since 1998, then as Boxer’s second restaurant. He closed his Montecito location two years later.

“It’s sad,” he said. “It breaks my heart to be closed. All of my employees have found other work. Consequently, when we reopen, many of them won’t even be able to return back.”

Boxer wants to reopen as quickly as possible, guessing that if work began right now, Palazzio could catch the New Year’s crowd two months away.

He’s hired lawyers to help sort out everything and doesn’t want to discuss what a Plan B would look like.

“That’s not an option,” Boxer said of not reopening at his current address. “Right now the plan is to reopen as soon as we can in the current location. That’s our No. 1 goal. That’s what we’re directing all the energy to.

“It makes no sense to be closed. Everybody loses.”

— Noozhawk staff writer Gina Potthoff can be reached at gpotthoff@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.