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County approves settlement with Zillie Hospitality for Berner Botanical Gardens; three-year extension included
Summary
The County authorized a settlement with Grandview Management Inc. (d/b/a Zillie Hospitality Group) to resolve COVID-era disputes under the 2013 Berner catering agreement, approving a $82,072 one-time payment and a three-year contract renewal term as part of the resolution.
The Office of Corporation Counsel and Milwaukee County Parks asked the committee to authorize a settlement and mutual release with Grandview Management Inc., doing business as Zillie Hospitality Group, resolving disputes arising from the 2013 Berner Catering and Facility Management Services Agreement related to COVID-era closures. Deputy Corporation Counsel Karen Tidwell said settlement discussions produced a lump-sum payment and an extension of the existing Berner catering contract.
Jim Tarantino, deputy director for Milwaukee County Parks, said the parks department supports the resolution and that the agreement provides operating revenue for the year. “This includes, among other things, a one-time payment of $82,072 which will help us with our operating revenue for this year,” Tarantino told the committee.
Karen Tidwell described the dispute as driven by COVID-era shutdowns and differing views about whether the contractor owed performance-based payments to the county for the period the facility was closed. “We believed it was fair and reasonable to resolve this with the payment of $82,000,” Tidwell said in open session, describing the resolution without disclosing negotiation details.
Supervisors questioned whether federal pandemic relief (forgivable PPP loans) received by the contractor affected the fairness of the settlement and whether discussing some negotiation terms belonged in closed session. Tidwell said the PPP question did not come into play during the settlement discussions in open session.
Supervisors also asked about venue usage, rental rates and public access; parks staff said Berner is a high-use, premier venue with frequent weekend events and that the third-party caterer provides kitchen capacity the department cannot otherwise scale. Tarantino said the Berner agreement is separate from the county’s contract with Zillie at other facilities such as the Domes and that each contract stands on its own.
Supervisor Johnson Jr. moved to adopt the resolution authorizing the settlement and mutual release. The committee recommended adoption of the resolution by a roll call vote: Supervisors Capriollo, Johnson Jr., Logison and Martinez voted aye; Chairman Balinski voted no, producing a 4–1 result recommending adoption to the full board. The action was previously recommended by the Parks and Culture Committee by a 4–3 vote and had been laid over one meeting at the JLAC on April 15.
