Former Porterhouse owners fail to pay city

Monday deadline missed

By Candice Boutilier

Herald staff writer

MOSES LAKE — Cardroom Inc., doing business as Porterhouse Restaurant, failed to pay the city back taxes and fines by the Monday deadline.

Council gave Brian Rosborough and Steven Crothers 10 days to pay $146,987 in overdue taxes and penalties plus $17,000 in accrued interest.

Taxes were not paid or were partially paid from the last two quarters of 2005 through the first quarter of 2008, Moses Lake City Manager Joe Gavinski said. The new owners paid their current taxes owed to the city.

Gavinski said he planned to contact the Washington State Gambling Commission Tuesday morning to notify the commission the debt wasn’t paid.

Further enforcement action is expected against the liquor and gambling license used at the restaurant due to the failure to pay, he said.

The licenses remain in Rosborough and Crothers’ names.

Gavinski said he was not sure how the city would collect the funds. There are options including using a collection agency or using the court system.

He said he did not receive any communication from Rosborough or Crothers regarding the issue since they were given 10 days to repay the debt.

The Columbia Basin Herald was unable to contact Crothers for comment and Rosborough was unavailable.