by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
The City thinks it may have been taken for a ride by River City Rickshaws.
City lawyers are discussing the pursuit of felony charges against the owners of the bike taxi service that operated in Jacksonville in the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl. The City started exploring its legal options when they say the husband-and-wife owners, Steven and Sherry Harrell, bounced a $5,000 check written to secure City permits.
But the Harrells say the check didn’t bounce — they stopped payment on it because the City didn’t follow through on contractual promises. After operating under the terms of his original contract with the City in the week leading up to the Feb. 6 Super Bowl, Harrell said the City tried to change the terms of the deal the night before the game.
Harrell acknowledged that he owes the City, but he doesn’t agree with the amount. He said he wrote the City a check for $5,000 but was promised that $2,500 would be refunded. When the City tried to keep all of it, Harrell said he stopped payment on the check.
The City didn’t provide on-street space for a pair of taxi stations or signs bearing the company’s name as promised, he said.
“I canceled the check because, as near as I could tell, they weren’t doing half of what they were saying,” said Harrell.
The City sent Harrell a letter March 3, telling him to pay within 30 days or else possibly face a civil suit for three times what he owes plus court fees. Harrell said he intends to settle his bill with the City before legal action becomes an option.
The City says the bad check was the last in a long line of frustrations with River City Rickshaw.
The City’s Director of Special Events, Theresa O’Donnell, complained in an e-mail to City lawyers that the company had sold its permits to other rickshaw drivers. Those sales were contingent on promises the Harrells couldn’t keep concerning competition and access to the streets, said Special Events spokesperson Christina Langston. Many of those drivers ended up complaining to the City.
Harrell said the City doesn’t understand how his business works. He leases his bikes to drivers who negotiate fares with customers.
“It was nothing strange, that’s just how the business works,” he said.
Harrell said he was summoned to a meeting with O’Donnell on Saturday, the day before the Super Bowl. She was not happy he was leasing out about half of his City-issued licenses, he said.
“She said I was making money off the City and that wasn’t how it was going to work any more,” said Harrell.
Harrell said he was told that he owed the City an additional $5,000. He wrote the check, he said, because he already had agreements to rent bikes and to sell advertising on the rickshaws. Allowing the City to close him down would have opened him up to lawsuits from those partners, he said. Harrell canceled the check on Monday.
Harrell said he wants to keep a good working relationship with the City. His rickshaws are still operating in San Marco and St. Augustine and
even worked downtown for the Eagles concert Sunday at the Veterans Memorial Arena.