Green Dot Stables, Ambassador Bridge company owner settle parking lot dispute

Charles E. Ramirez
The Detroit News

The legal battle between the owner of the Ambassador Bridge and a Detroit restaurant over land that was used as part of the eatery's parking lot is over.

Attorneys for the Detroit International Bridge Company and Green Dot Stables said Friday the two sides reached a settlement agreement. They presented the agreement to Wayne County Circuit Judge Muriel Hughes during a Friday court hearing.

Exterior of Green Dot Stables restaurant.

Under the agreement, Melvin Butch Hollowell, the bridge company's lawyer, said the restaurant will buy the piece of land at the center of the dispute for $90,000 and the company will provide the restaurant with the deed to the land. There is a non-disparagement clause in the deal as well.

It also calls for the bridge company to have the first right of refusal should the restaurant decide to sell the property in the future.

Michelle Harrell, the lawyer representing Green Dot Stables owner Jacques Driscoll, said the agreement went into effect immediately.

Both attorneys said their clients were pleased with the outcome.

"It worked out well for both parties," Hollowell said. "My client is very pleased."

Harrell said Driscoll is glad he can get back to serving "its fantastic burgers."

"It's very good that it's been resolved," she said. "My client just wants to focus on making sliders and not have a dispute with his neighbor. He's very happy."

The deal comes about a week after Hughes adjourned a show-cause hearing to give lawyers for the bridge company and Driscoll more time to work out a resolution.

The flashpoint of the case was a fence the bridge company erected on Aug. 31 that cordoned off the disputed land that the restaurant in southwest Detroit uses as a parking lot. 

The fence that Detroit International Bridge Company installed blocking half of the Green Dot Stables restaurant's parking spaces, as well as its access to a dumpster and storage unit. A judge ordered the fence removed in September and on Friday, Sept. 17, 2021 the bridge company reached a deal to sell the property to the restaurant for $90,000.

Driscoll filed a lawsuit against the company over the fence. A judge ordered two weeks ago that the company had to take the fence down.

cramirez@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @CharlesERamirez