Tenant cries foul over marketing lower Main Street

(Park Record) John Sutton, owner of Mulligan's Irish Pub at 804 Main Street, is refusing to pay rent monies used to promote The Shops at The Village on Lower Main.

The landlord, NNN Summit Watch, is seeking his eviction. Thursday in 3rd District Court, Judge Robert Hilder said the dispute puts him in an awkward situation. The tenant, Sutton, agreed he's in arrears on rent monies, so it's appropriate to allow his eviction. But Hilder also said he's not ready to rule on whether Sutton's reasons are justified.

Recently, Judge Bruce Lubeck agreed with Mulligan's neighbor, The Alpine Internet Café, on a similar issue. Hilder appeared to be favoring Sutton on Thursday when he told NNN Summit Watch that the lease did not allow them to charge Mulligan's for promoting the shopping center.

At issue is a paragraph in Sutton's lease that requires him to be a member of the "Town Lift Merchants Association" and pay a portion of joint marketing costs.

But there is no merchant association at the Marriott Summit Watch and that isn't in dispute.

What is, however, is if NNN Summit Watch can use that paragraph to justify charging tenants extra "Common Area Maintenance" (CAM) fees to pay the company Strategic Communications to market The Shops at the Village on Lower Main.

Original Article