A Cook County judge on Thursday dealt a big blow to Mayor Rahm Emanuel's attempt to break a lease that has allowed a clout-heavy ownership group to operate a lucrative restaurant in Millennium Park on favorable terms by Mayor Richard M. Daley.... Daley claimed he was too "SICK" to testify in the deposition of this lawsuit.....
A Cook County judge on Thursday dealt a big blow to Mayor Rahm Emanuel's attempt to break a lease that has allowed a clout-heavy ownership group to operate a lucrative restaurant in Millennium Park on favorable terms.
Judge Moshe Jacobius ruled that it was clear the city and the Chicago Park District "worked very closely together" under then-Mayor Richard M. Daley in setting up the lease for the Park Grill restaurant. "It is plain to the court that the city knew what the Park District was doing and indeed encouraged the erection and operation of the restaurant," Jacobius wrote.
Thus, the Emanuel administration's argument that the Park Grill ownership group's lease was illegal because the Park District negotiated it more than a decade ago for land the city owned does not have merit, Jacobius said. The verdict brought to an end a bench trial that stretched on for years amid testimony that touched on allegations of romantic favoritism and fixed bidding under the former mayor during the planning for the lone restaurant in the famous downtown park.
"To dislodge the joint venture after all that has occurred would bring a pallor on anyone transacting business with the city," Jacobius wrote.
Stephen Novack, attorney for the Park Grill investors, said he hopes the ruling "ends the nightmare" for his clients.
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