Black Bear Crossings settles with city

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Legal settlement is 3rd largest in the history of the City of St. Paul

Feat9_14BlackBear1 David Glass (left), co-owner of Black Bear Crossings with his wife Pamela Glass, is pictured with a customer during happier times for the eatery. They will receive a settlement of $800,000 to end the threat of further legal action against the City of St. Paul.[/caption]

By JANE MCCLURE

A legal dispute with Black Bear Crossings has resulted in the City of St. Paul’s third-largest legal settlement in history. The St. Paul City Council voted 5-1 Aug. 27 to approve the $800,000 settlement. Ward Six Council Member Dan Bostrom voted against the settlement and called on Parks and Recreation Director Mike Hahm to resign.

Last year Hahm announced the city would end Black Bear Crossings lease for space in the Como Park Pavilion. That sparked as legal fight between the city and restaurant owner-operators David and Pamela Glass. The Glasses recently won a lawsuit against the city for breach of contract. The approved settlement avoids a related legal action in which the couple was to seek damages. It also limits what can be said publicly about the dispute.

Bostrom also expressed unhappiness that Ward Five Council Member Amy Brendmoen was absent for the council vote. She was away on city business, on a trip to Copenhagen. Brendmoen had approached David Glass in spring 2013 and suggested that Black Bear partner with the Sea Salt eatery, which operates at Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis.

She also raised questions about whether Black Bear was meeting its public purpose in operating at Como. The restaurant owners contend that they had operated at Como for 13 years, and had earned kudos from the city in the past.

Feat9_14BlackBear2 The court found that the city caused “irreparable harm” to Black Bear’s business, and that finding was a prime consideration in the settlement agreement. (Photo by Tesha M. Christensen)[/caption]

Brendmoen and Hahm are in a relationship, which Bostrom also raised. He said Brendmoen should be present to vote on the settlement, saying she and Hahm got the city involved in the Black Bear litigation.

Bostrom called the entire situation “totally unacceptable. “We’re the ones sitting around this table who had absolutely nothing to do with this $800,000 settlement,” he said. “And the folks that got us into that aren’t even here.”

Other council members expressed unhappiness about the settlement, but voted for it rather than face additional litigation on the basis of defamation. Ward Three Council Member Chris Tolbert said he finds the settlement frustrating, and suggested that city staff get more education on working with contracts. He noted that the judge, in its ruling in favor of Black Bear Crossings, criticized the city’s handling of the matter,

In a statement on her Facebook page, Brendmoen said, “Dear Constituents, The terms of this settlement include an agreement limiting what can be said to the media about the basis for the settlement decision. Unfortunately, voting to settle with Black Bear Crossings was determined by the city attorney’s office to be in the best interest of the City of St. Paul, which is why the majority my colleagues took that very difficult vote—a vote I would have taken as well, if I were not traveling on city business.” She went on to note the request for proposals for a new operator and praised the potential for the pavilion to serve the community.

City officials have pointed out that Black Bear made about $250,000 last year. That’s less than Minneapolis parks operators make. They also criticized the business for not providing complete records. But the Black Bear operators countered by saying that city officials failed to say what type of improvements were needed. They also alleged breach of a 2009 lease. And, the court agreed with Black Bear.

Black Bear Crossings opted to not renew the lease and is closing at the end of December. The city recently released requests for proposal for a new operator.

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