MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The chains locking the doors of the New Daisy Theatre were finally taken down Wednesday afternoon.
A sign from the Department of Revenue was posted to the glass doors on Tuesday saying the state had officially seized the property after the owners had failed to pay their state taxes.
Paul Morris said that’s not right.
“There’s only one problem — this building is owned by the city,” he told WREG. “It’s an embarrassment.”
It was the only way the Beale Street manager could describe the picture of the doors chained shut with a big red sign that red Department of Revenue.
The City of Memphis owns the New Daisy Theatre and leases it out to the people running the place.
Morris said the state’s issue was with the tenants and not the city.
“This tax issue surely doesn’t involve the City of Memphis. We definitely don’t owe any taxes on that property, and no one is saying that we do. Yet the state seizes the city’s property without notice. That really bothers me.”
Morris said he wasn’t going to take sides here and said if anyone owes the state money, the state should do what it has to do to get it.
The problem he had, though, was with how the Department of Revenue went about it.
“Before the state seizes property that’s owned by the City of Memphis, they should give us at least a courtesy phone call heads up,” he said.
WREG contacted the Department of Revenue, and a spokesperson released the following statement:
“State law expressly prohibits the Department of Revenue from commenting or providing information about individual taxpayers.”