Tallahassee Reports has learned that the owners of the Edison Restaurant in Cascades Park, did not disclose investors in the Edison restaurant on the application for a beverage license, as required by Florida state law.
Cascade Holdings, LLC, doing business as The Edison, filed for a Florida state beverage license on September 2, 2015. The license allows for the sale of alcohol on the restaurant premises.
The beverage license application states:
I swear under oath or affirmation under penalty of perjury as provided for in Sections 559.791, 562.45 and 837.06, Florida Statutes, that I have fully disclosed any and all parties financially and or contractually interested in this business and that the parties are disclosed in the Disclosure of Interested Parties of this application. I further swear or affirm that the foregoing information is true and correct.
Both Adam Corey and Ryan Grindler, managers of Cascade Holdings, signed the documents in the presence of a notary public. See application here.
The Tallahassee Democrat reported for the first time, in an article on October 18th, 2015, that there were financial investors beyond Corey and Grindler.
From the article:
One of the investors is Sean Pittman, whose company, ESP Media, has worked for Gillum’s campaigns. Pittman also is a city lobbyist, who for years has subcontracted under powerful Florida lobbyist Ron Book.
Pittman is one of about a dozen wealthy investors. The smallest investment is one percent, representing $12,500, Corey said, and no one owns more than 10 percent. Corey secured a commercial loan to transform the eyesore into a showpiece.
Corey and Grindler told the Democrat that they had rather not reveal the names of the investors.
However, the application for a Florida state beverage license includes one page dedicated to disclosing investors and related questions. Go to page 7 of the application here.
Corey and Grindler disclosed that they were the only owners, which contradicts the statements made to the Tallahassee Democrat.
Tallahassee Reports talked to Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) and was told that all investors with more than a 1/2 percent interest would have to be disclosed, even if the investment occurred after the beverage application was filed.
A public records request by TR revealed that no such disclosure has been filed with the DBPR.
In addition, sources tell TR that there are questions about the timing of the investments and the filing of the beverage license application.
As previously stated, the application for the Edison was filed on September 2, 2015.
Sean Pittman, an investor, tweeted on September 14th that he was a partner.
Did any individual investment from other than Corey and Grindler take place before the beverage application was filed with the state of Florida on September 2, 2015?
If so, penalties could include revocation of the beverage license.
DBPR told Tallahassee Reports that the only way this could be determined would be with an investigation initiated by the Division of Alcohol, Beverages and Tobacco.
Editor’s Note: Tallahassee Reports continues to get calls and emails from citizens and business owners regarding the operation of the Edison. When we can verify information with documents we will publish reports.
Edison Owners Fail to Include Investors on State Beverage License Application added by Staff on
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Hmm, I wonder how this might tie in with the current Meyers park public land grab proposal right around the corner.
Fools by the time the investors cash in on their free years worth of profits. Serving 100 guest cheap appetizers and building sales are 30k for a night most consider a failure. Srx letting them sell alcohol without that 400k license .
Right now investors have made huge gains because they will not be able to pay the rent, they used the free year to boost profits.
What are the chances that some of the invested funds came from a recent Bitcoin/bank fraud scheme? Look at Corey’s past restaurant partners.
Crony Capitalists!
Not surprised by this corruption…the Democrat ignores any bad news, for example, the weekly murders. Typical southern good old boy crime….they would not last a day in the North
Soooo, what’s the over/under that the reason Corey and Grindler don’t want to disclose the names of the investors is that Andrew Gilliams name tops the list???
Bingo!
It is very easy for a restaurant to get a liquor license in the state of Florida provided they sell more food than liquor. For bars that don’t sell food or little food, it is very expensive. I can assure you with a 100% personal knowledge that ownership in restaurants is rarely revealed for this form of license or others and it’s never checked. Right or wrong that’s just how DBPR has decided to operate. DBPR has so many issues yet no one is willing to investigate them. Their investigators are told to find violations even when none exist. Just talk to the investigators who left knowing on good conscience they couldn’t do what they were asked to do.
I don’t see anyone revoking this license or any other for potentially not disclosing investor information.
I am not an expert in this field, but friends who are, tell me to get a liquor license in this town is harder than getting a marriage annulled by the Pope of Rome. And more expensive to the tune of $400,000. TR may want to find out how the owners of Edison got their liquor license.
None of this is surprising because the laws do not apply to them. More to the truth, they know our State Attorney, Sleepy Willie Meggs, is too lazy to prosecute these white collar cases because they are and I quote him “too hard”. So there is the incentive to lie on the application because they know there is no enforcement.
I’ve lived in Tallahassee for the past eight years. Prior to this I lived in Orlando and Tampa Bay for a larger number of years. Perhaps now I’m more inclined to observe politics and elected official conduct these days than in my main working and child-raising years when I was focused on other priorities.
However, just from my eight years as a Tallahassee resident, I can honestly say I’ve never seen a more corrupt, collusive, devious, dishonest local government and group of elected officials than in Tallahassee. (Other than the last eight years of the Obama administration, who dominate the category hands-down.)
Hopefully the liquor license will be revoked so those who omitted (lied on) the legally-required investor information are at least punished to some degree. One wonders if taxpayer funds were somehow diverted or “redistributed” as loan money for some of the investors. Perhaps if this sort of conduct goes on long enough, the law violations will be serious enough for criminal prosecution, and Tallahassee can at laest start the process of finding better-quality people to elect to city government.
I believe someone needs to be arrested.
The State has someone who oversees hotels and restaurants; Hotel and Restaurant Administration it was called. If it no longer operates under that name there is still someone. Also, there is an Association (or was)of a similar title that lobbied for those businesses. Under whatever name those interests exist, what say they?
I don’t know which I enjoy more: The dumb antics of our local dimbulb, petty crooks or the artful way TR always shines a light on them.
I cannot believe these people are allowed to continuously circumvent (liberal for “break) the law! Ordinary citizens would go directly to jail, liquor license revoked and put out of business. Could citizens file a suit against the city for misleading the taxpayers and refusing to release records and continue to finance these criminals with our money? Seems lawyers are always helping the politicians scam the system, what about attorneys to stand up for us?
I believe it. Voters don’t care what their politicians do so long as they make the right noises.
I wonder if any elected officials are investors…