The owners of the Hacienda Cantina in Palm Springs took to writing an odd, rambling letter to defend their business relationship with the Mayor of the city because their “fun” is being ruined!
Sure, giving the mayor of a city $200,000 in “consulting fees”, only to see the city turn around and give $250,000 for your business (all while you are not paying your contractors more than $450,000) may seem a bit shady (and kind of dickish) to some – but for Heidi and Richard Meaney it is perfectly normal. And why? Because The Mayor performed at their wedding ceremony and they went to his child’s christening. Valid points indeed. Anyone who has ever been to a wedding or christening can not be guilty of anything. Ever. So there!
In the open letter to friends, The Meaneys note that The Hacienda has indeed “struggled” and the owners have made “multiple trips to the table to infuse capital” (i.e. borrow money) – which can not possibly be a good sign for a business open for less than a year. The Meaneys then go on mention a “complicated tax matter” (whatever the f**k that means) and blame the whole thing on a handful of “disturbing” people who are out to drag them though the mud and “ruin their fun”.
Here is the entire letter, via KESQ:
Dear Friends,
Being extremely private people we have never written an open letter before. Then again we’ve never had a group of people try to assassinate our character either. Rich’s relationship with Steve wasn’t hatched 24 months ago when they decided to work together as some people have insinuated. Their relationship goes back more then a decade and before Steve was on City Council. We were fortunate enough to attend the christening of Steve and Christopher’s children 9 years ago. When we were married 5 years ago, not only did Steve and Christopher attend, Steve performed the ceremony. Rich’s dispute with the Franchise Tax Board that’s been repeatedly referenced in the paper stems from a very complicated tax matter from 2010. He didn’t know he was expected to forgo his God given right to defend himself against the government because he does business with a friend that happens to be a public official. Hacienda has been a struggle no doubt. We were scheduled to open in January of 2014, however permit and construction issues delayed us until June. In hindsight we should have waited until fall for the opening. Nevertheless we made it through 2014 and we have been thriving in 2015. We, as well as our partners, are very committed to make this work as evidenced by our multiple trips to the table to infuse capital. Hacienda has been addressing the past due construction debt and will continue to do so. It’s sad that a handful of people are unhappy with the most productive Mayor this valley has ever seen and feel that it’s ok to drag both of us through the mud in an effort to unseat him. We have been doing business in Palm Springs since the early 2000’s and have invested millions of dollars into projects without any drama or problems. They should be ashamed of themselves. Now that we have gotten that off our chests we are moving on. We are not going to let a few disturbed individuals ruin our fun. Thanks and have a good weekend.
Heidi & Rich
