After months of searching, Tom Mckay felt fortunate to find a home for the El Paso Boxing & Martial Arts Hall of Fame’s Wall of Fame. The new found home would be used to showcase the rich boxing and martial arts history of El Paso, Texas. Tom is the president and founder of the Hall of Fame and created the non-profit organization back in 1993. All proceeds of the Hall of Fame Banquet are donated to charity.
Tom had been going through serious personal problems, enough to make some people go crazy and the new project of opening and maintaing a home for the Hall of Fame would help take his mind off the pain.
Tom and the landlord had come to an agreement on the rental lease and agreed that as long as Tom renovated the commercial unit located at 3015 McRae Blvd., Tom would not be required to pay rent for the first year. The time and cost of renovating the unit would be used to credit the first year’s rent. The commercial unit was in complete shambles and required new flooring, paint and drywall work.
Determined to create a place for local fighters to enjoy, Tom took on the difficult task of renovating the run down commercial unit. Months passed and with his money invested along with countless hours of hard work, Tom was about fifty percent done with the renovation project. It was then when Tom received a call from the property landlord. The landlord stated he was required to return his keys and vacate the property. Why? Because someone else decided to rent the same property as is.
Of course Tom wasn't about to drop everything and give up with out a fight. He demanded that the landlord reconsider their verbal agreement . Tom had invested already invested time, energy, and money into fixing up the property for the Hall of Fame. Tom along with the help of friends and family removed the old flooring and made many necessary repairs which included new paint and sheet rock.
However the landlord said there was no official contract and therefore Tom was out of luck and needed to return the keys as soon as possible. The landlord did state that he would reimburse Tom for the cost of the materials used but only if Tom provided receipts. The labor and time would not be reimbursed. While this story appears extremely disappointing, it is not the worst part. The landlord was a long time family friend of Tom which made this even more painful.
The Hall of Fame should of had something in writing before entering into an agreement with the landlord. The landlord most likely understood this and therefore knew the ball was in his court the entire time of the rental transaction. He knew if a BIGGER BETTER Offer ever came through the door he could easily reneg on his VERBAL agreement. The landlord understood that most people do not and that is his verbal committment would not hold up in court. Ultimately it would be his word against the The Hall of Fames and with no contract he would win.
The El Paso Boxing Hall of Fame has been the only organization to recognize fighters in the Southwest. A few have even become World Champions. I hope that Hall can find another location soon.
This is your typical New York style slum lord mentality. First Dangle carrots with false promises. Next go back on your word if and when something better benefits you.
This is a terrible injustice. The landlord has no word and should be taken to court over this matter.
Hard to believe that Mr. McKay is able to smile after this. Humanity is out the window and people have no word nowadays, that is the reason that this whole country is going to shit!