- A jury ruled the Fair Deal Cafe occupied its space illegally
- Attorneys for the cafe plan to file an appeal and a motion to stay enforcement
- OEDC claimed the cafe owed $7,900 in unpaid rent, but court documents showno money will be awarded to OEDC
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
A jury ruled in favor of the Omaha Economic Development Corporation, finding that the Fair Deal Cafe occupied its space illegally. However, the restaurant remains open for business as usual.
Dave Pantos, the attorney for the Fair Deal Cafe, said they are waiting for a final order from the judge based on the jury's determination.
"Once he makes his decision, we're going to file an appeal right away, and as part of our appeal, we're going to file a motion, to stay enforcement," Pantos said.
By law, the Fair Deal Cafe will need to pay an appeal bond to stay in business during the appeal process.
Michael Robinson, the vice president of operations with OEDC, previously said he had no comment on the case and would let things play out in court. Robinson testified that the Fair Deal Cafe owed $7,900 in unpaid rent.
Court documents show no money will be awarded to OEDC. Pantos said during this time, Fair Deal was making payments to the court, not OEDC directly.
"There were a bunch of issues in this case between Jackson's Fair deal But the judge only allowed us to talk about whether or not OEDC could kick out this great restaurant. Because just like they're saying, Jackson owes them money, we think they owe us money," Pantos said.
An attorney for OEDC said today he has no comment at this time, adding he wanted to speak with his client first.
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