The owners of an ice cream shop in Brooklyn have been wrapped up in lawsuits with the town for nearly two years, and they say it has put their livelihood in jeopardy.
It all started over an argument about the use of a driveway, as the ice cream shop “The Ice Box” shares the right of way with the East Brooklyn Fire Department.
"We took it over in 2018, and everything went well until about 2020,” said Jenn Nemeth, who owns the shop along with her husband Matt. “Obviously, COVID affected everyone, but in addition to that, we had some incidents start with our neighbors at the fire department.”
The shop dates back to 1978, and the Nemeths said they weren’t made aware of any issues predating their purchase of the property. Jenn worked at the ice cream shop when she was a teenager.
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They claim the issues started as they were making upgrades to their property for their new restaurant “Suto.”
"One thing over the next happened, and [it] ended up becoming a pretty large court case and they sued us not once but twice, [and] filed an injunction last year,” Matt Nemeth said.
The suit claims that the Nemeths, or JMN Properties, had been “parking or allowing the parking of vehicles in the area of the easement,” which the Nemeths admitted to in a countersuit, and in an area “designated as a fire zone,” creating “a safety issue” with the department’s use of emergency vehicles, both of which the Nemeths deny.
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"I just simply think a few people didn't like us. They sort of made it about land, without getting in the weeds, moved the target a couple times, we tried to keep up with the moving target,” Matt Nemeth said.
The couple said they’ve spent over $100,000 in legal fees so far, and are at risk of losing their businesses and home.
On Oct. 6, nearly two years after the first lawsuit was filed, it was dropped.
"There's been no acknowledgement that the lawsuit was brought against us and then dropped with a piece of paper. That to me is mind-blowing that that town would see that and allow this to happen and know that we're in dire straits and not intervene,” Matt said.
The Nemeths posted their struggles to Facebook and received an outpouring of support. They said they’ve kept quiet about the situation until now.
"I just want them to know, we are fighting. This property is not us; this is the community, and we are doing everything we can to make sure we stay here for the town of Brooklyn,” Matt said.
On Monday, supporters gathered outside of The Ice Box with signs to put some attention on the issue and help save the shop.
With mounting legal fees, the community is hoping their voices will help.
"This last couple months of financial burden due to that injunction was just unbelievable. [The] kind of money I can't even fathom. [We’re a] small businesses,” Jenn said. “This is not easy. We don't get rich, we don't have nice cars, we don't go on vacations, we just want to survive."
NBC Connecticut reached out to an attorney representing the town for comment, but has not yet heard back.
