City of San Mateo Sued by Operator of Restaurant at Poplar Creek Golf Course
A major lawsuit has been filed against the City of San Mateo and individual city employees by Alicia Petrakis, the owner of Par3SM, LLC, which operated the Par 3 restaurant and Par 3 Villa Vista banquet hall at the Poplar Creek Golf Course, a city-owned property. Since October 11, 2024, the building that housed Par 3 and Villa Vista has been red-tagged by the City of San Mateo because it is unsafe for human occupancy due to the presence of mold and other airborne contaminants.
The complaint alleges that the City of San Mateo and several individual employees knew for years that the building was unsafe and dangerous, and had issues with flooding and sewage entering the physical space. Despite being warned for years by Alicia about decay of the walls, water intrusion throughout the building, and continuous pooling of water, the City did nothing to alleviate the issue. The City never warned Alicia that the building might not be safe for occupancy. Photographs of the mold that plagued Alicia and her employees are shown in the complaint. The case is brought by the law firms of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy and Goethals & Stone.