The Retaliatory Eviction
When a landlord fails to maintain a building, permits a competing business to operate in violation of an exclusivity clause, and does not respond to repeated written requests — a tenant has legal options. We exercised one of them.
On April 30, 2025, we sent a written request to meet with Black Crow to address the ongoing repair failures and their impact on the business. Shortly after, we met with Randy Meucke in person. He told us the issues would be addressed. We told him we could not continue paying rent until he met his obligations under the lease. This is a recognized remedy under Georgia law. We documented our position in writing before taking it.
Randy Meucke did not address the repairs. The building continued to deteriorate.
On November 17, 2025, we filed our complaint in the exclusivity dispute. On December 12, 2025 — three weeks later — we were served with a dispossessory. Black Crow filed to evict us while the building was still unrepaired and our lawsuit was active. The flood came a month after that, on January 16, 2026.
The dispossessory cited two grounds:
1. Non-Payment of Rent
We had not paid rent for several months. We had told them we would not, in writing, and explained why.
2. Operating Two Brands
Black Crow claimed we violated our lease by operating Lucky Hare and Night Train Pizza when our permitted use is described as "a restaurant" (singular).
Night Train Pizza opened in May 2024. Randy Meucke was personally invited to, and confirmed his attendance at, the friends and family preview on May 8, 2024. At the time Black Crow filed this claim, Night Train Pizza had been operating for nearly two years. Black Crow's principals — Randy and Lana Meucke, who also own Northgate Station Dental — dined at Night Train Pizza at least 14 times during that period.
"Randy Muecke has dined at Night Train Pizza no less than fourteen times between May 9, 2024 and October 18, 2025."
The timing matters. Courts and the public are entitled to draw their own conclusions about why a landlord who had watched a business operate for 18 months without complaint suddenly decided to seek eviction immediately after that business asserted its legal rights.
On January 12, 2026, the Magistrate Court entered a Consent Order staying the dispossessory case — putting the eviction on hold to allow mediation. Four days later, on January 16, the flood caused by the sprinkler system failure shut down our restaurant entirely. Black Crow then failed for weeks to make any repairs, while the eviction threat remained on the table.