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big issue! HELP

Rockstar_pizza

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3 years ago I was looking for a good location to put in a pizza resaurant.
I came across this vacant land on a REALLY busy road, I approached the land owner a good ol boy. over the process of the next year I built my own pizzeria, GROUND UP, everything to include running the water lines sewer, dealing with the city, parking…blah blah.
My endevour has started to really pay off. My rent is an extremely low 600.00 for the next 12 years. Life was good
one of the reasons that my rent was so low was that on the acre of land there were 2 run down little garages that are vacant, he was excited to get someone there to get his property up and running.
about 4 months ago the land owner informed me that he was offered an extremely large amount of money for the acre of land, but not to worry that he talked to the land owner and he was assuming the lease. After meeting with my new land owner he informed me that he was cleaning the place up, he also owned a vacacnt Dairy Queen 40ft from my shop.
He has leveled everything around me and has informed me that he wants to put in a strip mall type center on the lot.
heres where it gets interesting he has since leased out the dairy queen to a guy that has another pizza place called Barlos pizzaria…(no not a mispelling) he actually bought a 3000.00 sign that was misspelled.
The land owner has offered me a very insulting offer to buy out my lease.
he plans on putting in a liquer store, and 5 small other shops, I asked about moving me to one of the shops ad he said it would be a substantial amount of an increase, plus he has a commitment from a sub shop (probably Jimmy Johns). Today I was approached by another business owner, someone who owns a liquier store down the street, he thinks we should file an injuction to get him to stop all developent, I think I could be successful in doing so, he has made the comment that he would work around me during the duration of my lease but not sure he could I am right in the middle.
so now my question, should I approach the land owner with giving him one of 2 choices. 1) build arround me.
or 2) he can lease a concession trailor for us to opperate (build out was to take 6 months) and build us something simular to like a wings and things or hooters since its his property what is the limits I can ask him to do as far as the decoration and the building…ie the walk ins and such?
 
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how many years left on your lease?

also not any lawyer…hire the LOCAL guy that specializes in this type of expertise
 
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I don’t know the specifics of your lease, you should definatly get a lawyer. I believe he can work around you as long as he does not hinder your operation, cut ingress or egress or visibility. You have 12 years on your lease, basically he is trying to manhandle you out so that he can do as he wishes with the property. If you do not have an exclusive lease basically he can lease to anyone, but that works both ways you can paint your place neon yellow and purple and put some speakers in front with some loud music, if theres nothing about it in your lease he can’t do anything about it. Ask him how marketable are his new units going to be with a nice eyesore in the front. I was in a situation similiar to you in strip center that was being remodeled for a new major tenant, they wanted me out, I only had 18 months left on my lease. They tried to pressure me out. I told them to screw themselves that a lease was a binding agreement and I wasn’t going anywhere. To Make a long story short, they ended up having to pay me 150,000 to move a 900 foot store with only about a year remaining on my lease when we settled.
 
i think you are screwed. after all, you are only leasing “land”, not a building. if he “clears the land” that he owns, and your dump is sitting on it, what can you do? i guess the good ol boy has you by the nuts.
 
Get a Lawyer as everyone has said but I do know he has to honor your lease even if it is a land lease. So no he doesnt have you by the nuts.
 
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yes, they are my favorite cookie.

and your nuts are in a vice, leasing land is silly, you better hope he doesn’t get a slick lawyer.
 
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