State shows liquor license issued to Dream Niteclub in former Studio 4 bar

The touted grand opening - billed on other social media sites as planned for Sept. 2 - comes as the former operators of Studio 4 and other people tied to aspects of the property continue various court battles.

Among the litigation: A lawsuit filed by Ann Arbor officials, calling the bar a public nuisance.

According to state officials Wednesday, VR Entertainment Network Inc. now has a liquor license registered to Dream Niteclub & Lounge at the South Fourth Avenue address.

VR Entertainment Network Inc., registered to Vickash Mangray, operated Studio 4 until it closed in early June.

The closing followed a court award of $324,890 to Papa Chulo’s Inc. after it filed suit against VR Entertainment, citing unpaid debt.

Meanwhile, Papa Chulo’s - an Ann Arbor-based partnership of Demos Panos, Pauline Skinner and Nick Panos - sublet the space from Maude’s Restaurant Inc. That entity, in turn, won a lawsuit this year filed against Papa Chulo’s, including a $52,754 judgment.

Now two new lawsuits related to the bar are wending their way through the courts:

VR Entertainment filed a two-count complaint against Papa Chulo’s on Aug. 17. The first count says it had a management agreement that would result in a payment of 5 percent of gross sales, which the “defendants consistently failed to (pay).”

It also claims that VR Entertainment was wrongly evicted in June, because it wasn’t part of the judgment and eviction directed against Papa Chulo’s.

The second lawsuit was filed in mid-July by Monroe Bank & Trust against Papa Chulo’s and its partners. The four counts, including breach of contract, center on a $151,000 loan balance that’s in default.

The bank is seeking the court to appoint a receiver to control the Papa Chulo’s liquor license, which secured the loan.

That license also is the center of a pending request with the state: Papa Chulo’s wants to transfer the license from VR Entertainment.

No one connected with Dream Niteclub could be reached for comment, including Ann Arbor attorney James Cmejrek, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Mangray and his partner, Jeff Mangray.

The city's lawsuit against VR Entertainment remains in progress, said Kristen Larcom, assistant city attorney.