RICHMOND, Va. — With a canal-front hotel deal in the works, the group behind The Locks development downtown is taking a neighboring landlord to court for allegedly blocking access to an alley that’s needed for the project’s next phase.
North Falls Acquisitions LLC – comprised of Fountain Properties’ Rick Gregory and Tom Papa, and WVS Cos. Jason Vickers-Smith and Richard Souter – is suing three business entities controlled by developer Margaret Freund, who runs Richmond-based Fulton Hill Properties.
At question is access to Pope’s Alley – a 35-foot wide private alley owned by both NFA and one of Freund’s companies, according to a lawsuit filed March 16 in Richmond Circuit Court.
Pope’s Alley is between 1300 E. Byrd St. – one of the remaining plots in the 7-acre Locks development – and Freund’s Lady Bird Hat Factory at 140 Virginia St., where CarMax recently moved in.
The hotel likely would take shape atop a site where an old warehouse building stands.
