The Real Jerk wins the right to stay put (Injunction: 1; Eviction: 0)
The eviction saga that cast Real Jerk owners Ed and Lily Pottinger as Davids against Bill Mandelbaum’s Goliath is over (for now, at least). A judge has granted an injunction that will allow the Caribbean restaurant to stay at the corner of Queen Street East and Broadview Avenue until the end of the year, though Ed told reporters he would be looking to move before then: “I just wanted a little more time to relocate, and I now have that. Whatever happens from now on, I’m going to be looking for a new place...hopefully in the neighbourhood.”
We predict that move will come sooner rather than later, because the rent is apparently about to go up. Way up. Mandelbaum had already lined up a new pair of tenants for the space, Rick Aulier and Scott Brockington, who were willing to pay $12,000 a month to house a new Irish pub. The decision gives the Pottingers and Mandelbaum a month to hammer out a new lease, but if they can’t come to an alternative agreement (and let’s face it, these parties haven’t agreed on much lately), the Pottingers will have to pony up the full $12,000—a big jump from the current rent of $6,300. For their part, Aulier and Brockington, who had planned to open their pub in time for St. Patrick’s Day, are out of luck. Perhaps The Real Jerk could throw some green beer onto the menu as a consolation prize?
• Real Jerk wins eviction reprieve [National Post]
