YULEE, Fla. – A Yulee restaurant will reopen Monday morning days after it and a restaurant on Blanding Boulevard suddenly closed their doors, prompting a lawsuit towards the bulk homeowners of the eateries.
Añejo Yulee will reopen Monday, whereas the Salsas on Blanding Boulevard is already again open.
The 2 eating places are at the center of a lawsuit filed by their minority owner, Melandy Higdon, after the bulk homeowners “briefly closed” them.
The lawsuit makes a number of allegations and requested the court docket to permit Higdon to reopen the eating places with out interruption from the bulk proprietor.
Learn the total lawsuit beneath.
The grievance highlighted an ongoing back-and-forth between the bulk and minority homeowners of the Mexican eating places in Northeast Florida.
Court docket paperwork claimed the bulk homeowners, Jesus and Blanca Valencia, “took unilateral steps – towards the calls for of its minority shareholder – to close down each of those profitable and worthwhile eating places.”
Higdon stated she tried to reopen the eating places however the the Valencias had modified the locks.
For the reason that information broke, the bulk homeowners despatched News4JAX an announcement, saying there may be extra to the story.
“For over a year-and-a-half Blanca and Jesus Valencia have tried to seek out an amicable resolution to show round their Yulee and Blanding eating places, which weren’t turning earnings. The Valencias personal and function a number of eating places. All of them are profitable and switch earnings. Solely those below Ms. Higdon, in Blanding and Yulee, had been failing and heading for chapter. Ms. Higdon was given the choice to let the Valencias’ crew are available in and run the failing eating places (with out her removing as a minority accomplice), purchase them out of their partnership, or promote her partnership to them. She refused all of these choices, whereas driving the eating places into the bottom….”
They stated that they requested Higdon to step down from her function and when she didn’t they “had no alternative however to lock the doorways to regain management of our enterprise.”
Learn earlier full assertion beneath:
On Dec. 3 we needed to make the painful choice to briefly lock the doorways of two of our eating places in Blanding and Yulee. This was the direct results of infructuous negotiations with Melandy Higdon, a minority accomplice we had requested to step down from her govt duties at these two places. She refused quite a few instances and was knowledgeable in writing, greater than as soon as, that her refusal would end result within the non permanent closing of the eating places to alleviate her from her duties, and for Mr. Valencia as President of the corporate and majority proprietor to regain management of the operations and restructure them for fulfillment.
As soon as the choice was made to shut briefly, Mrs. Higdon was notified in writing greater than as soon as over the span of 4 weeks and was particularly requested to inform the staff below her. She refused to take action. We had no alternative however to lock the doorways to regain management of our enterprise.
The closing is non permanent. Each shops will reopen subsequent week. All workers in good standing are being invited again to their jobs. We’ve got despatched an informative e-mail (connected) to them and held a gathering as we speak with lots of them. As of now, all the staff we’ve reached are comfortable to return to work.
We’re very sorry concerning the disruption this brought on in our workers’ lives and have expressed this sentiment to them. They deserve higher. We are actually shifting on to restructure our administration crew within the affected shops to enhance operations, in addition to communication with our workers and the group that has kindly supported us all through the years.
Jesus and Blanca Valencia, House owners of Salsas’ Restaurant and Añejo Restaurant
However Higdon’s attorneys stated their consumer was attempting to purchase the bulk stake and that their transfer to shut was to stress a greater deal.
In an announcement, a spokesperson for Higdon stated:
For the previous a number of years, Melandy Higdon has efficiently operated each Salsas Cocina Mexicana & Cantina and Anejo Cocina Mexicana in Northeast Florida to the delight of patrons, offering a beautiful place of employment for a lot of devoted and hardworking workers.
Sadly, the bulk shareholders have schemed to have interaction in a plan of disloyalty and sabotage to counterpoint themselves. This company greed in the end hurts the hardworking workers and their households and deprives its patrons of a favourite mainstay within the communities they function.
Jesus and Blanca Valencia’s actions will probably be handled in a court docket of regulation in order that justice will be served, and Ms. Higdon and her devoted crew can return to serving the patrons who love the meals and repair they obtained at each eating places. Due to Ms. Higdon’s tireless efforts, each eating places have been profitable, and there’s no reliable enterprise purpose for closings,” stated a spokesperson for Ms. Higdon.
A spokesperson for Higdon
That lawsuit additionally requested for the court docket to have the bulk homeowners pay for any reduction the court docket deems match.
However the Valencias say the state of affairs on the eating places is already turning round with a brand new administration crew in place.
The Blanding location opened lower than 48 hours after closing, and the Valencias stated most if not all workers are again. They stated all workers will probably be paid for his or her time without work.
Añejo Yulee, which reopens Monday, posted that they’re hiring.
The Valencias stated they nor their legal professional have been served with the lawsuit.
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