Smith College files suit to evict Green Street Cafe from Northampton location

by The Republican Newsroom
Tuesday July 21, 2009, 2:53 PM

By FRED CONTRADA
fcontrada@repub.com

NORTHAMPTON - The Green Street Cafe and Smith College are engaged in a game of chicken, and it isn't cordon bleu.

Last week, Smith filed for summary process in Northampton Superior Court, seeking to evict the restaurant from its 62-68 Green St.

It's the latest shot in a legal battle that has been going on for several years between the college and restaurant owners John A. Sielski and L. James Dozmati.

The dispute between the two parties goes back to 2003 when the cafe served as a gathering place for neighborhood residents opposed to the construction of Smith's new science center. The college, which owns the building where the restaurant is located, demolished several nearby buildings it owned to make way for the $73 million facility.

Sielski and Dozmati argued that the construction of the building next door to their restaurant would detract from their business. When Smith closed the 16-space parking lot behind the restaurant to use by their customers, Sielski and Dozmati filed suit in Hampshire Superior Court.

In the complaint filed July 14 by Smith, the college maintains that Sielski and Dozmati have not paid rent since April and owe $5,566. The non-payment violates the terms of the lease and allows Smith to take possession of the building, according to Daniel Finnegan the college's lawyer.

Mark A. Tanner, who represents Green Street, replied with a motion to dismiss the complaint or join it with the on-going suit in Superior Court. That suit also seeks damages for breach of contract.

"Smith College took back the parking lot for its own use," Tanner said Tuesday. "That's akin to renting me a house and saying that you're taking back the house."

Sielski said he believes the college has been trying to force him out for five years.

"They keep saying they're trying to help, but there's never any sane offer to help," he said.

Since it opened 18 years ago, Green Street has developed a loyal following, including many members of the Smith community.

Jan B. Carhart, a 1975 Smith alumna, has even offered to pay the overdue rent.

"I put it in writing to President (Carol) Christ," Carhart said. "They declined."

Carhart, who eats at Green Street three or four times a week, takes the restaurant's side in the dispute and said she is embarrassed by the way Smith has pursued the matter.

"I don't like to see my alma mater pull a stunt like that," she said.

Green Street closed for several months in 2007 after Sielski and Dozmati failed to address state fire code violations. The owners contended that it was Smith's responsibility, as landlord, to pay for the improvements. When Smith and the owners agreed to a new lease in September, 2007, the college promised to address noise and dust problems resulting from the construction of the science center. It termed the lease "favorable, generous and conducive to a successful restaurant business."

Tanner said he expects a hearing on the legal matters to take place in Northampton District Court on Aug. 6.