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Lawsuit further delays opening of Threadgill's

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Kenneth Threadgill once stood in a Travis County Courthouse line to get a liquor license so he could sell booze at his filling station. He had waited for Austin to go “wet.” That was in December 1933.

Folks around here have been waiting for a Threadgill's to open in Cedar Park for about three years. Well, Cedar Parkers, don't expect it to open anytime soon.

Threadgill's is being sued by its partial financial backer, Peter Barlin.

Barlin would not comment on the lawsuit because of the legal proceedings. He did say, however, “We look forward to Threadgill's opening in the near future.”

Though Barlin wouldn't comment on the case, developer Abe Zimmerman said, “Our financial investor is not living up to his obligation.”

“We are dead in the water and I'm real upset about it,” said Zimmerman.

According to Zimmerman, Barlin tried to change the original deal, in which Barlin would provide the money and Threadgill's would have complete control of the restaurant. Now, Zimmerman said, Barlin's group (ASC Management) wants to have co-control and “refuses to put up the rest of the money and he's suing us.”

Barlin and Zimmerman both agree that the shell of the restaurant is finished and all that's needed to complete the project is the finish-out money.

“He wants a court to say he's not obligated to put up the money and the space they have is substantially complete,” Zimmerman said. “We can't complete it without his funds.”

According to Barlin's plaintiff petition and application for declaratory relief, Barlin received a letter from Threadgill's President Edwin O. Wilson on March 5, 2007, “demanding that Mr. Barlin fund $250,000 into the Partnership in accordance with the requirements of the Partnership Agreement.”

When counsel for Barlin responded suggesting that no budget had ever been prepared or approved and that, as a consequence, the request was premature, Barlin - through counsel - received a demand letter from George Slade, counsel to Threadgill's Cedar Park LP, demanding a capital contribution of $1,650,000 immediately pursuant to the partnership agreement. Slade's demand included an alleged budget which, among other things, showed broad categories such as “finish out” costing $1.8 million.

An actual dispute and controversy exists between Barlin and Threadgill's as to the parties' rights under the agreement.

“Threadgill's had control and they want control,” Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman said the opening of the much-anticipated landmark restaurant is in limbo and nobody can give a clue as to when the place could possibly open.

“There is no time frame now, and we're upset about it,” said Zimmerman.

Threadgill's has faced several obstacles along the way. When hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast in August 2005, much of the steel that was getting shipped in for construction projects got diverted to the coast.

When Threadgill's began getting steel again, the cost had gone up. Threadgill's lost workers to construction companies responding to the business and housing boom taking place in the Hill Country.

The city of Cedar Park kept putting incentive packages on the table for Threadgill's to finish in six-month windows. Threadgill's kept asking for extensions that Cedar Park never granted.

“People ask us if the city was the problem and I say, ‘No, they're not,'” Zimmerman said. “The city of Cedar Park has been great with us the whole time.”

Threadgill's, once known as the Armadillo World Headquarters, is known for its home-style cooking, endless vegetable selection, cozy bar area and popular site for local live music.

It's also known as the place where Janis Joplin got her first big break.

Threadgill's has two locations - one in North Austin and another in South Austin - in addition to the Cedar Park location.

Threadgill's Cedar Park is just one tenant in the complex.

T-Mobile, Double Dave's Pizza and Castle Dental are three that have either already taken up residence or are on their way in.

Despite the lawsuit, both parties say they're eager to open the restaurant's doors to Cedar Park.

“We're real anxious to open,” Zimmerman said. “This whole thing is just frustrating to us.”

E-mail editor@hillcountrynews.com

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