‘I just want them to pay me.’ Lexington beer hall owes $250,000 on construction, suit says
The expanded, nearly $6 million Marikka’s, a Lexington beer garden on Southland Drive, opened to fanfare in February. Now the property owner is being sued for nonpayment of more than $250,000 in construction costs.
Long Construction Management LLC of Lexington has a pending suit against Steel Curtain Holdings LLC, the company that owns the land on which Marikka’s sits. Subcontractors that were involved in the project were also named as defendants.
Long Construction says it entered into an agreement with Steel Curtain in July 2017 to make improvements to Marikka’s. The suit says the full contract price for the work was $3,935,565.
But Steel Curtain’s failure to pay $251,348.95 is a breach of the contract, the suit says. Marikka’s co-owner Doug Tackett Jr. — he is listed as a member/manager of Steel Curtain in state business records — referred questions about the litigation to his attorney, Thomas Rawlings. He could not be reached for comment Wednesday or Thursday.
Long Construction filed a mechanic’s lien on the Steel Curtain/Marikka’s property.
A mechanic’s lien is a legal claim filed against a property that has been remodeled or improved. Suppliers or subcontractors typically file such claims to recover money that they’re owed.
Other companies and subcontractors have filed mechanic’s liens against Steel Curtain, too. They include Woodall Construction Co. of Lexington for $35,691.43; Quality Drywall of Nicholasville for $26,080.70; O’Nan Glass and Window Co. of Lexington for $12,047; Landmark Sprinkler Inc. of Lexington for $14,797.30; and D&D Electric of Nicholasville for $28,430.50.
Traditional Bank, which loaned money to Marikka’s for the rebuilding, is also named as a defendant. The bank says in a counterclaim that Steel Curtain is in default of its loan agreements by its failure to keep the property free and clear of liens.
In addition, Dion Zigelnik, a partner and project manager for American Iron Works LLC of Knoxville, Tenn., said his company has never been paid for $35,000 in concrete work.
“I did all the footings, the walls, the sidewalks and the slabs,” Zigelnik said. “I talked to the attorney for Marikka’s and he said Long didn’t get the change order signed. But I never had any change orders.”
Zigelnik said he hasn’t filed a lien, and he doesn’t want to pay an attorney to recover the money. “I just want them (Long Construction or Marikka’s) to pay me,” Zigelnik said.
Some of the defendants have filed counterclaims against Long Construction.
The old Marikka’s Restaurant and Bier Stube was torn down to make way for the new Marikka’s, which includes three indoor and three outdoor sand volleyball courts.
Tackett Jr. told the Herald-Leader in February that the project cost nearly $6 million, including a $2.3 million small-business credit initiative financed through the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority. The state agency supported the project because it would create up to 30 jobs.
This story was originally published December 13, 2018 at 11:56 AM.