SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Rande Gerber is furious after two of his popular nightclubs at the Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego were shut down over allegations of repeated abuse and violent conduct on the part of the clubs' staffs, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
On Thursday, the hotel's owner, Tarsadia Hotels, abruptly shut down both the Sweetwater Saloon and Moonstone Lounge, locking out some 150 employees in the process.
Gerber, the husband of supermodel Cindy Crawford, called the maneuver "illegal and unethical," saying the closure comes after several attempts by Tarsadia to double the agreed-upon rent almost from the day the two clubs first opened in December 2007.
"They said, 'Pay double the rent or we will find a way of getting rid of you,' " Gerber told the UT. "We did not agree to the terms of the proposed rent increase.
"We thought the issue went away, and the past year we've been operating our business as usual. All of a sudden there is a call at 5 a.m. that they are locking the doors."
The formel model's Gerber Group, in which he runs alongside his brother, has a 10-year lease on the nightclubs. Tarsadia argued in a statement to the paper that Gerber's claims are an "attempt to distract the public from the wrongful conduct of some of the Gerber Group employees." The company also said they've filed a lawsuit for damages "arising from their wrongful conduct."
Tarsadia said it conducted its own internal investigation into claims of excessive force by the clubs' security staff after several inquiries by the San Diego Police Department. That eventually led to the review of two videotapes that supported the claims. In one tape, a handcuffed patron was shown being beaten by the security staff.
"In order to protect hotel guests and patrons, and the reputation of Hard Rock Hotel San Diego, Tarsadia was left with no alternative but to proceed with the termination of the agreement," the hotel group said in statement to the paper. "Tarsadia Hotels has a zero tolerance of illegal and wrongful conduct, and has made every reasonable effort to have the Gerber Group correct the defaults."
However, Howard Weitzman, an attorney representing the Gerbers, called Tarsadia's actions "inappropriate and unlawful."
"They had a number of alternatives available other than closing two very successful businesses and putting 150 people out of work," he told the UT. "It appears to me there was another agenda involved in their decision, but all of that will surface in the course of litigation."
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