Dayton pays Masque owner $150k after legal fight

Parking lot

Parking lot

Dayton’s elected leaders this week approved a $150,000 payment to settle a legal dispute over the parking lot behind Club Masque.

After participating in mediation, the city agreed to settle litigation with the Helios Company related to a 1.5-acre surface parking lot at East Second and St. Clair street.

>> FIRST REPORT: Masque, a renowned Dayton gay bar, dance club closing 

Luke Liakos, the president of Helios who owned the now-closed Club Masque, filed a civil lawsuit in January against the city, CityWide and CareSource claiming breach of contract.

Helios said it had the right to use, operate and generate income from the parking lot under a contract with CityWide.

>> PAST COVERAGE: Club owner: ‘He tried to squeeze us and raise the rent’

Helios said CityWide violated the terms of its agreement by giving CareSource the exclusive rights to park at the lot 12 hours each day from Monday to Friday.

    

In a court filing, CareSource said it was granted use of up to 210 parking spaces for below-market costs of $12,500 per year. CareSource has used the parking lot since July 2017.

Coronavirus: Complete Coverage by the Dayton Daily News

Helios claims it did not receive any of this revenue and argued it had the option to buy the property at fair market value, otherwise it was owed $700,000.

CityWide transferred the property to the city of Dayton earlier this year.

MORE: Stimulus payment problems in Dayton region: too much, too little, few answers

Helios claims CityWide refused to sell the lot at fair market value and the city should be bound by the terms of its contract with CityWide.

The city in a counterclaim argued that Helios breached its contract by not providing required maintenance and security for the property and by not paying real estate taxes.

CityWide spent about $400,000 on real estate taxes for the lot, and the city said it was seeking damages in excess of that amount, according to a counter claim court filing.

Club Masque closed because of a financial disagreement between Liakos and the building’s owner.

About the Author