Vendors Claim RI Commerce Corp Board Member’s Club Owes Tens of Thousands
Wednesday, November 04, 2015
Vendors who worked on Manchester 65, the West Warwick club owned by a Rhode Island Commerce Corporation board member, have told GoLocal that they never were paid for services they provided.
The club is facing an eviction hearing on Thursday November 5 as the result of a lawsuit filed by the building landlord against Manchester 65,which is owned by the Commerce Corp's Vanessa Toledo Vickers, and de facto run by her husband Jim Vickers.
“She’s responsible for it then, she has to pay,” said Alex Lermontov with Alert Fire Solutions, who said that Manchester 65 owes him approximately $15,000 for work he had done on the club. “They don't care about people who help them, and to do everything, how does she have the authority to be on the Commerce Corporation? I will never do any more work there.”
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The club, which opened in 2013, was shut down briefly due to fire code violations, according to the Kent County Daily Times -- but was reopened once they were addressed.
“I did a lot of work with [Vickers], I went through electric and inspections. He was supposed to pay me money, he never did. I went through lawyers and collections agencies,” said Lermontov. “He promised he'd pay a certain amount of money a month, we event went to a notary, I never got money. If [Vickers-Toledo] owns the place, she's responsible for it then."
Vickers Toledo’s ownership of the club was not disclosed by the Raimondo Administration on the Commerce Corporation website biography, which was brought to light with community leaders opposed rapper Chief Keef performing at the club.
Richard Ferreria with Giana Enterprises said that he started a job at Manchester 65 that got more expensive, and wasn’t paid for the additional work.
“That guy owes me money, we’re talking $4,000. I haven't talked to [Vickers] recently but karma is what it is,” said Ferreria on Tuesday. “It was a $6,000 [sewer] job that became $10,000. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a contract, or anything in writing, so I couldn’t go after him.”
Ferreria said he does not generally encountered clients who don’t pay.
“If it happened a lot, I wouldn’t be in business,” said Ferreria. “It is what it is. I’m Portuguese. I don’t forget.”
"Unusual to Get Stiffed Like This"
Engineer Ken Hayes with South County Design told GoLocal that he’s owed “several thousand dollars” by Manchester 65.
“We have not been paid in full, I think we were paid an initial 1/3 down,” said Hayes. “We did design work for the sewer system. I bent over backwards to help him. [The town] was giving him a hard time, about what he was doing. I had experience with them. I went to extra meetings, I did two designs…they approved the one I did to save [him] money."
“I never charged him the extra time,” said Hayes, who said Vickers “just doesn’t respond" when he inquires about the money owed. "He doesn’t respond. But every day I get an email telling me what’s playing at the club. In the engineering world it’s unusual to get stiffed like this.”
Vickers did not respond to request for comment on Tuesday.
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