About Paul Leongas

Paul Leongas grew up in Park Ridge, Illinois, in a Greek family where food and hospitality were central to daily life. After graduating from Michigan State University, he and his sisters Sophia and Lydia purchased The Curragh Traditional Irish Pub in Schaumburg, Illinois. What started as a single location became a multi-site restaurant operation spanning over two decades, with locations in Edison Park and Skokie. Paul Leongas ran each Chicago-area location for approximately 12 years.

The Curragh wasn't just a business—it became part of the fabric of every neighborhood it entered. In 2002, the restaurant earned the Guinness Gold Standard Award for the Perfect Pint, recognition that requires demonstrated, repeated execution of precise standards. Whisky Magazine named The Curragh one of the great whisky bars of the world. Those accolades reflected a commitment to consistency and quality that Paul Leongas built into operations across multiple locations simultaneously.

Managing three restaurant locations for over 20 years taught lessons that extended far beyond hospitality. Cash flow management across multiple sites with separate rent cycles, inventory, and seasonal patterns. Leadership that requires training managers to execute standards when the owner isn't present. Building systems that maintain quality regardless of which shift is running. Understanding every mechanical, electrical, and plumbing system a commercial building contains—not from a manual, but from dealing with failures at the worst possible moments.

That experience created the foundation for Paul Leongas's transition into commercial real estate development. As principal of Axis Development Group LLC, he develops and manages commercial properties across Park Ridge and Chicago's North Shore. Unlike most developers, he self-performs construction through Axis, managing all trades directly. This means he's the person standing in the building when decisions get made about HVAC sizing, electrical capacity, and mechanical systems. He specs for actual operational loads, not theoretical minimum compliance, because he's lived in spaces where developers chose the cheaper option and tenants paid the price.

His commercial portfolio includes properties managed through multiple entities including EP Curragh LLC, EPC Properties LLC, PLL LLC, and RLS Edison Park LLC. The Leongas family also operates Holland Pub LLC in Holland, Michigan, continuing their hospitality roots outside Illinois.

Paul Leongas attended Maine South High School in Park Ridge and remains deeply connected to the community. He supports Maine South Hawks football, the Hawkettes dance team, and local youth athletics. His Greek heritage shaped an approach to business that treats hospitality and building as extensions of the same principle: take care of people, build something that lasts, and show up consistently.

Every building Paul Leongas develops through Axis is informed by 25 years of being a commercial tenant. He builds for the person who will work in the space every day because he was that person for over two decades. That perspective—tenant-first, operations-focused, built from real experience rather than theoretical frameworks—defines how Axis Development Group approaches every project.