Last Word from Nathans: Thanks for Helping Repay $22,000 Debt
Last week, news broke that famed Georgetown saloon Nathans was closing after 40 years.
Then, we also discovered that Nathans' property was still on the market. If this was any old watering hole, it wouldn't matter. But Nathans was located on "one of the top 10 locations on the East Coast — you can't get much better than that," as a real estate broker told the Reliable Source yesterday.
That location, of course, was Wisconsin and M Streets in Georgetown.
But the spot was also the source of owner Carol Joynt's woes, according to her blog. The building's owners were unreasonably strict on her lease terms, she contends (see Monday July 6's entry).
Once the closure was made final, Joynt still had one rather large request from her public: Could it please help with chipping away a $22,000 debt? The restaurant closed last night, and this weekend, Joynt raked it in. See how much below the jump.
Joynt keeps a blog of all the happenings at Nathans:
July 11 report: "As of Friday evening, we had received $11,000 in gifts, ranging in size from $50 to $5000. The average is $100. We cease serving at close of business on Sunday night, but we will be inside cleaning out the place on Monday and Tuesday (please, come grab a broom and help)."
July 12 report: "We have raised almost $19,000 from your contributions. Beyond amazing. What a great group of people out there, loving Nathans. IT'S THE CITIZENS BAILOUT. Went down for brunch and during the hour I was there at least five people pressed checks into my hand. Came home and there was a check in the mail slot."
And at some point yesterday, Jim Kimsey "bought the etched glass window and doors that are uniquely Nathans. Very nice of him. With his purchase, we will be within inches of our goal of $22,000."
It's a little unclear to me exactly what all this money is for, only that most will go to the Office of Tax and Revenue, and the rest may help with a rental payment due this week. I'll try to get a final sum this afternoon.
Update: Here's a Facebook message from Joynt explaining the $22,000: "When the city heard Nathans is closing they called for $22,000 in February sales tax which we failed to pay. (This happens when a business is failing). Otherwise, we're current, and we've paid hundreds of thousands of sales tax over the years. Tomorrow, if its not paid, they will put liens on my house and bank account."
Image by Ktylerconk, Flickr Creative Commons
3:52 pm
Please explain this to me.
Joynt collected $22,000 on behalf of the District of Columbia in the form of sales tax. Then the money disappeared.
How is this not grand larceny?
4:09 pm
Wait, so when Murky Coffee does it, they are criminals and their business is shuttered. When Carol Joynt does it, she's a valiant widow who just managed to find herself in a tough spot?
10 bucks says that her house gets foreclosed on when she can't figure out a way to beg for the mortgage payment money from somebody.
6:26 pm
She got the money from friends and patrons that loved the place and want to help her out of the tax hole her late husband left her....why does anyone have a problem with that? It was my favorite place in DC and it will be missed. Glad to hear folks were able to help her out!
7:50 pm
@Bull, I oughta punch your junk.
8:28 am
Tired -
Sadly, it's not uncommon for small businesses to be behind on their sales tax. I know full well the money we collect belongs to the city, but businesses - and I learned this only once I inherited one - tend to operate with certain kinds of float with their money. In a good economy it works. What happened to Nathans after the market crash, when business plummeted by 25-30 %, is that we were caught between tax payments and the rent, also quite high, at the time about $21,000. Because I was personally on the lease, I could not close. I had to wait for the lease to expire in April, and to get the new agreement that gave me the opportunity to get out. No one hated the situation more than I. Up until this market crash, we always got our taxes paid on time.
This is why I pulled the plug. I had a small window in which I could get out of the lease and I took it. We hoped to sell the liquor license to pay the back sales tax, but the landlords put a lien on the liquor license. I was honestly and sincerely between a rock and a hard place, and we talked to OTR daily. We were not trying to screw anybody. What we were trying to do was get them paid, to honor the debt. I would have paid myself but I had already taken a lien on my house to cover $160,000 in property tax and back rent we owed. I was tapped out. Again, Nathans, which never could afford itself, was busted flat. A reader of my blog suggested that if 220 people contributed $100 we would have it covered. So, I put that out there and it appealed to a great number of people who love Nathans. The response has been remarkable and I'm genuinely touched and so very appreciative.
I never asked to own this business, tried for 12 years to get out, couldn't, and did my best to make a go of it. I admit I was a dismal failure. Maybe you already own a small business, but if not, you should walk a week in the shoes of a small business owner, especially one with a tough lease and in this economy.
Sincerely,
Carol Joynt
10:14 am
The landlords were not "unreasonably strict" with the terms of the lease. There was over half a million in back rent due. The landlords are 2 elderly widows and the rent was their sole source of income. Their lawyer had to insist on the payments and put a lien on the liquor license in order to preserve an ability to get income out of the foreclosure. Joynt has constantly maligned these ladies in order to elicit sympathy.