A South Jacksonville woman entered a lawsuit in Morgan County Court this week claiming fraud and deceptive practices against an individual looking to construct a restaurant in the village.
Attorneys from Thompson, McNeely, Crews, Hurst and Thielen filed the lawsuit on behalf of 73-year-old Lela Arthur. The litigation, which only represents one side of the claim, states A.W. Developers and Al Whewell agreed to build a residence for Arthur at $160,000.
The claim reads that Arthur wrote a check to Whewell for $60,000 for the house and on March 1st of 2014 the parties entered a contractor agreement for A.W. Developers to furnish all the materials and perform the work Arthur needed done.
According to the lawsuit, no work had been done as of July 2014 and communications to Whewell had not been returned. The lawsuit says Arthur rescinded the contract and requested a refund.
Later in the month, the claim states correspondence was sent to Arthur with a proposed mutual release. It stated Arthur would agree to forfeit all sums previously tendered to Whewell and A.W. Developers as liquidated damages. Arthur didn’t sign the mutual release.
Arthur states the contractor agreement should be rescinded because of the failure to initiate construction in a reasonable time, failure to secure a building permit and Whewell’s alleged attempt to obtain payment for mowing and real estate taxes on the property.
Arthur is seeking more the $50,000 in damages.
During the winter, Whewell’s proposal to construct a restaurant near RMC Cinema was a focal point of South Jacksonville’s village meetings