Post by robeiae on Apr 19, 2017 8:34:00 GMT -5
www.miaminewtimes.com/news/donald-trump-wont-pay-miami-paint-store-court-upholds-300000-fine-over-trump-national-doral-miami-golf-course-9275404
Here's the actual decision: www.3dca.flcourts.org/opinions/3D16-1065.pdf
As the article notes, it's a typical tactic for Trump-the-developer and clear evidence that he put "the little guy" to the screws, whenever possible, just to make a buck or two.
And you know, it's stuff like this where I don't get Trump and those around him, at all. I mean, I know he's not trustworthy and I think he's a grifter, but this lawsuit had been hanging over his head for years. Plus it was centered in Florida, with a small business in Miami. How/why did this not get taken care of, pre-election? Given the importance of Florida in the election, it seems like someone should have said "hey, let's get this mess off the books" ages ago. Or maybe the fact that this didn't happen indicates and idea that has been previously floated: Trump didn't really expect to win the election, so he had no reason to clean up all of his messes, prior to the campaign (once he won the Repub nomination, one could argue that it was then too late to clean up things like this, as it would only bring them into sharper focus). I don't know. But I'm glad the paint shop may finally get paid, though I guess Trump could still appeal to the State Supreme Court...
Yesterday Miami's Third District Court of Appeal ruled that Trump Endeavor 12 LLC, which owns Trump National, owes the cash to a local store called the Paint Spot, which has been fighting to get money out of Trump since 2013. (Perhaps this is why a few of the president's latest budget proposals seem designed to let Miami sink into the rising ocean.)
According to court records, Trump agreed to pay the Paint Spot, which supplies Benjamin Moore paint, $200,000 for supplies to help renovate the Lodge at Trump Doral. But, Trump being Trump, in 2013 he simply decided he had "paid enough" of the contract and wouldn't fork over the last $32,535.87 he owed.
It's a classic Trump move: He and his companies have been sued literally thousands of times, often for simply deciding that he no longer felt like paying prearranged sums to small companies and construction contractors.
So, in 2014, Circuit Court Judge Jorge Cueto slapped a lien on the entire Trump Doral resort and ordered the then-not-president to fork over cash or face a June 2016 foreclosure sale on one of his most-valued properties. In another classically Trumpian move, he persuaded the judge to cancel the foreclosure proceedings after he placed the $34,000 into an escrow account, according to Jose Lambiet. But, naturally, Trump still refused to actually give that money to the Paint Spot.
According to court records, Trump agreed to pay the Paint Spot, which supplies Benjamin Moore paint, $200,000 for supplies to help renovate the Lodge at Trump Doral. But, Trump being Trump, in 2013 he simply decided he had "paid enough" of the contract and wouldn't fork over the last $32,535.87 he owed.
It's a classic Trump move: He and his companies have been sued literally thousands of times, often for simply deciding that he no longer felt like paying prearranged sums to small companies and construction contractors.
So, in 2014, Circuit Court Judge Jorge Cueto slapped a lien on the entire Trump Doral resort and ordered the then-not-president to fork over cash or face a June 2016 foreclosure sale on one of his most-valued properties. In another classically Trumpian move, he persuaded the judge to cancel the foreclosure proceedings after he placed the $34,000 into an escrow account, according to Jose Lambiet. But, naturally, Trump still refused to actually give that money to the Paint Spot.
As the article notes, it's a typical tactic for Trump-the-developer and clear evidence that he put "the little guy" to the screws, whenever possible, just to make a buck or two.
And you know, it's stuff like this where I don't get Trump and those around him, at all. I mean, I know he's not trustworthy and I think he's a grifter, but this lawsuit had been hanging over his head for years. Plus it was centered in Florida, with a small business in Miami. How/why did this not get taken care of, pre-election? Given the importance of Florida in the election, it seems like someone should have said "hey, let's get this mess off the books" ages ago. Or maybe the fact that this didn't happen indicates and idea that has been previously floated: Trump didn't really expect to win the election, so he had no reason to clean up all of his messes, prior to the campaign (once he won the Repub nomination, one could argue that it was then too late to clean up things like this, as it would only bring them into sharper focus). I don't know. But I'm glad the paint shop may finally get paid, though I guess Trump could still appeal to the State Supreme Court...
