Dexter's North Point Seafood & Steakhouse closes amid equipment seizure for unpaid taxes
North Point Seafood & Steakhouse, 8031 Main St., Dexter.
Special to AnnArbor.com
North Point Seafood & Steakhouse, an upscale restaurant in downtown Dexter closed suddenly this week, just before notices that all of the restaurant’s equipment was being seized for $17,178 in unpaid back taxes were posted on the front of the building at 8031 Main St.
The closing came as such a surprise that minority owner Cindy MacNeil didn’t learn about it until after the doors had been shuttered. She said someone told her about it Wednesday night.
“I heard about it through the grapevine,” she said. “I’m assuming their last night was Tuesday.”
MacNeil said she hasn’t been involved in the day-to-day operation of North Point for 2 ½ years, and that partners Mark Perry and Bob Heebner ran the restaurant.
MacNeil said it was her understanding that her partners were looking for a buyer for North Point.
“I didn’t think they were going to close it,” she said.
Jim Chaconas of Colliers International said he'd fielded some interest about North Point, although he was not a broker for it. "It was a while ago, but there were some maybes. Not anything more," he said. The 180-seat restaurant was large for the relatively small Village of Dexter, and it competed with Ann Arbor, Chaconas said. And the fact that the restaurant was in debt made it less attractive, Chaconas said. "It was too far in the hole."
MacNeil said she last discussed the financially strapped restaurant with Perry three weeks ago. She said she called Perry when she received word of the closing, but has not spoken to him. North Point’s phone has been disconnected and Perry could not be reached.
MacNeil’s husband, Wally MacNeil, is co-owner of Mac’s Acadian Seafood Shack in Saline, where Heebner once was the chef. The two restaurants are not connected, Cindy MacNeil said.
North Point opened in April 2007 and MacNeil said she was active in the opening and in helping to run the restaurant for about a year.
The closing also came as a surprise to John Evans of Swisher Commercial, who represents owners of the three-story building where North Point was located.
He said legal documents had been filed to evict North Point, but that it was his understanding the restaurant wasn’t going to close until the end of March. Evans this afternoon said he thought North Point was still operating.
The building is owned and managed by Monument Park Investments LLC.
According to the notices posted outside of the restaurant, both Scio Township and the Village of Dexter are seizing the equipment and fixtures for unpaid personal property taxes dating back to 2008.
Meanwhile, a discount offer for North Point was sold Feb. 15 on AnnArbor.com as part of the “The Real Deal” promotion offered on weekdays.
Customers bought 189 $50 gift certificates for $25. All of the purchases will be refunded, said David Martel, marketing director for AnnArbor.com.
Anyone with further questions about the refund should email or call 734-623-4652.
Comments
robin
Mon, Feb 21, 2011 : 3:09 p.m.
Contact LivingSocial for a full refund to your recent purchase
Rod Marlow
Sun, Feb 20, 2011 : 3:38 p.m.
Heard the rumor about 2 weeks ago, hoped it was just that. Unfortunate for our community that this happened. Considered myself somewhat of a regular, Mark Perry always greeting me by name. Staff and crew always friendly too. I'm told that the restaurant biz is a hard one to make a go of it. Guess that is true here! Just want to thank Mark and his staff for "giving it a go" in our town. Good luck in your future endeavors.
Top Cat
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 4:35 p.m.
I never thought the North Point was a fit for Dexter and am surprised it lasted as long as it did.
Boo Radley
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 2:28 p.m.
I would like to compliment AA.com for their great service in taking care of the issue with the Real Deal coupons for the North Point. I purchased one of the North Point coupons last week and my wife and I went there for dinner on Thursday. Finding it closed, we called the restaurant's phone number and it had been disconnected. I then called the AnnArbor.com "Real Deal" number on the bottom of the coupon and was immediately assured that my money would be refunded. I received two different confirmation emails of my refund and apologies for the inconvenience. Thanks for the great customer service.
Cabana
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 1:34 p.m.
I really enjoyed this restaurant. I purchased gift cards directly from them for Holiday gifts. They were going to use them last night, that's when we found out they closed the doors. Are we "Sorry out of luck"?
smacks
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 1:19 p.m.
Nothing "fine" about this place. Mediocre food and indifferent service. Good riddance.
CynicA2
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 8:24 a.m.
Another one bites the dust! More to follow... stay tuned.
Marvin Face
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 2:52 a.m.
Any place that uses comic sans has no business staying open.
Chris Goosman
Mon, Feb 21, 2011 : 7:28 p.m.
They don't use Comic Sans, it's BradleyHandITC on their menu and logo. This is from downloading the menu and looking at the PDF in Acrobat. It's not the greatest font, but I try and judge my restaurants on food and service, not on fonts. ;-)
John B.
Sun, Feb 20, 2011 : 8:19 p.m.
Thx....
BroncoJoe
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 9:40 p.m.
The menu used a Comic Sans type font on their menu.
John B.
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 4:44 p.m.
Can someone translate this comment for me?
ivanovna
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 2:23 a.m.
"North Point Seafood & Stkhs in Dexter, MI is a private company categorized under Restaurants. Current estimates show this company has an annual revenue of $1 to 2.5 million and employs a staff of approximately 50 to 99." Seems like $17,178 is ridicules! Someone made major mistake!
BroncoJoe
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 2:14 p.m.
The taxes are for multiple years. Tax notices seizing property do not get posted after even 1 or 2 years of missing tax payments.
Halter
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 1:14 a.m.
Sad...and will be missed, it was a fine establishment... But also a sad commentary on how things like this happen....the taxes on small businesses are so exorbitant that it makes it next to impossible to keep payments going, especially if you are late on even one payment, it just escalates and gets out of control: and then owners end up putting everything on their own credit cards, and pretty soon the personal taxes are behind and the whole thing goes to the dogs... Sorry to hear about this...good people having trouble just trying to keep a business going that was clearly dear to their hearts...You don't do this kind of business thing you are going to become a millionaire; but you hope you are at least providing a service that others will enjoy and keep you financially stable....Sorry to all involved. Here's to brighter days.
johnnya2
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 5:05 a.m.
That is hardly the reason. There were $17 k in taxes they were behind on, but I bet if you look at the other bills there are some suppliers who are going to take a huge bath on this. If the only debt was a mere $17k I am sure getting a loan or working something out would be possible. Hell, if I thought $17k would end their problems I would loan them the money to pay their taxes. This is probably a better thing for them., It ends the suffering before it just gets silly.
Moms Kitchen
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 12:32 a.m.
@A2badger you are forgetting Katies, which has the best bugers in town, but you are an A2 badger, so maybe you don't get to Dexter much!
Moms Kitchen
Tue, Feb 22, 2011 : 4:04 p.m.
There's nothing wrong with Katie's bathrooms and kids are in there all the time. They havea a kids menu, in fact, that's pretty good. I wouldn't have a business meeting there or at Dexter Pub or the Dairy Queen or the A&W either. It's too casual for that. Mostly, the drinking crowd hangs out in the bar side....
DexterD
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 2:32 p.m.
Katies is a drinkers bar. Have you been in the bathrooms? Could you bring your children there for dinner? Could you have a casual business meeting there? Katies has it's place, but Dexter has grown up and needs more.
DexterD
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 12:29 a.m.
Dexter needs a pub that serves great food. With the article last week about the Aubree's franchises , this would be a great location and the atmophere of what Aubree's is would fit this small, but growing town.
SalineMachine
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 11:40 p.m.
Regarding Living Social: I also purchased a voucher. I just sent them an e-mail with this article attached to it. I recommend you do the same, and if they don't provide a full refund, simply contact your credit card company and request a charge back.
Jared Mauch
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 11:22 p.m.
North Point will be missed. While more expensive than chain places (eg: applebees) it was a fine dining experience without the stuffy environment or prices of Main Street/Chop House. I will miss this as a choice, leaving me with the Pub
Rachael
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 10:37 p.m.
My husband and I ate at Northpoint on Tuesday night, which was apparently the last day they were open. They were out of almost their entire menu and the only beer on tap they had was Guinness. They tried to explain this away by saying Valentine's Day cleaned them out, but it seemed like something was up. Now I know. I echo all the previous commenters' sadness as it was truly a special place for a small town like Dexter. I will definitely miss the half off happy hour with free mussel appetizers and special events. It was a very large restaurant, which doesn't work anywhere, including in Ann Arbor, right now either (remember Zanzibar?). I hope the space is split into smaller units so more businesses will take the risk. If any restauranteurs are reading this, bring us an authentic Mexican restaurant please!!! On an up note, I must thank annarbor.com's top notch customer service for refunding my money for the Real Deal before I even knew it was out of business. In fact, I learned that Northpoint had closed because I received the refund.
a2badger
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 10:19 p.m.
Very sad. The Bistro restaurant closed last year. Now, the North Point. Both attempting, I believe, to bring a more upscale dining experience to a small town. Notwithstanding the A+ Terry B's, this leaves Dexter with the Pub, Lighthouse, A&W, Cottage Inn, the Food Zone and of course, the Dairy Queen which I see will reopen at the end of February
Boo Radley
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 2:32 p.m.
The Bistro restaurant did close, however, you should try the Red Brick which is now in its place. I just went there for the first time this week and had a great experience.
Halter
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 1:17 a.m.
I know there is a lot of talk about Terry B's, but that is also the second business for that restaurant's owner, and may to some degree be a tax write-off and will likely survive no matter what happens there...
mb20fan
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:28 p.m.
Wow this is bad news kind of my Dr`s office is upstairs.I always wanted to try the food it smells so good.
Val
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:12 p.m.
Here is an example of why property taxes are bad. Taxes should be paid on profits not on value of property set by somebody else. The equipment may be full paid for but now they don't have it to operate their business. Seems to me that they weren't charging enough for the meals or disregarding an obligation to pay taxes. By the way these taxes are paid by the customer in every thing they buy. Where was the company that owns the building? They will be on the hook for the remaining taxes. I truly hate property taxes. I could loose my house if for some reason I fail to pay my property taxes.
yohan
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 10:47 p.m.
Val - May I respectfully suggest that you read the article before you start spouting. From the article above "seizing the equipment and fixtures for unpaid personal property taxes dating back to 2008." Personal property taxes ARE NOT property taxes. BIG difference.
aajeff
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:47 p.m.
These are "personal property taxes" that the liens have been filed for, so the Landlord has no responsibility for those. Scio Township and Dexter Village want their money evidently. And yes, they must have "disregarded an obligation to pay..." as you said. And yes, you WILL lose your house if you fail to pay your property taxes!
RTFM
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:10 p.m.
After reading an article about Mac's restaurant not being in compliance with taxes in Saline that potentially jeopardized the establishments liquor license, I have avoided eating at both establishments. Restaurants under financial strain are more prone to cut corner in order to survive as I found out eating at Mac's onetime. Now wondering if Red Brick will pick up marketshare.
Boo Radley
Sat, Feb 19, 2011 : 2:20 p.m.
Red Brick picked up a customer in at least one instance. My wife and I went to North Point Thursday evening and finding it closed, walked down the block to Red Brick. We had a great meal and great service. It was also quite busy. I don't know if that is normal for Red Brick, or due to the closing of North Point.
zip the cat
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:09 p.m.
I can see why they closed $30.00 for a n y strip steak.WOW,thats pretty steep
Indicat
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:06 p.m.
What a shame. Dexter needs another fine dining establishment, especially with Encore Theater so close. I hope another restaurant goes into the space soon.
hilking
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:50 p.m.
From livingsocial.com 10. Refunds LivingSocial will provide a refund of the purchase price paid by you for any Deal within five days after the purchase of a Voucher, provided that the Voucher has not yet been redeemed. After five days, we do not provide refunds except that we will provide a refund if you are unable to redeem a Voucher before the applicable expiration of the Voucher because the relevant Merchant has gone out of business.
lambchop
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:42 p.m.
Mary, call Living Social for a refund. They will refund your money. It must be whomever made the online transaction in order for them to.
applehazar
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:39 p.m.
The timing is very interesting to me. My understanding of deals like these are to provide an influx of money to the vendor for a discount later. In fact there are statistics that say more than 50% of the "coupons" are never used so its a win win for the merchant. Looks like the vendor needed the $$ as we now know why. This is my opinion and I liked the establishment and hope the future can clear up for them. I applaud AnnArbor.com for being able to refund all that bought the offer recently.
Elaine F. Owsley
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:29 p.m.
P.S. The food prices were not bad and the food was not straight off the Gordon Food Service truck, either. Their prices were comparable to other restaurants nearby and the quality was excellent. This is really sad.
Elaine F. Owsley
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:24 p.m.
I can't tell you how bummed I am about this. We can't seem to keep good restaurants in Dexter and North Point was certainly one of the best we've had. It would seem that poor management was the main cause, because the food was excellent. Where am I going to get that good calamari??? Or the steak salad? Or go for after church brunch?
Newbster
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:11 p.m.
What a shame! We've eaten there quite a bit and always enjoyed the comfortable environment and food. We did, however, think the menu needed updating the past year or so. Hopefully someone else will go into the space and open another great dining facility. Note to future restaurant that may go in the space... Terry B's is closed on Monday & when North Point was also closed Monday there was no good place in Dexter to meet for business dinners. I would suggest they chose another day to be closed, if they need to be closed
John B.
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:18 p.m.
Monday is the most common day for restaurants to be closed. It lets them 'catch their breath' after working Saturday and Sunday, and is usually the lowest-grossing day of the week, if they stay open, I believe....
Meg Geddes
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 8:02 p.m.
Oh this is nice. They just participated in a Living Social deal too, where both my mother and I paid $30 for $60 deals. I suppose we've lost our money now.
gobluevictors
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:20 p.m.
From Living Social's website: What if the business offering the deal goes out of business!?! Don't worry. This rarely (if ever) happens. If by some stroke of terrible luck it does happen, contact us by submitting a ticket on our support site and we'll get you a refund promptly! I bought the same deal on Living Social, so was concerned, but I just submitted a ticket on their site, and it doesn't sound like it will be a problem. This really is too bad! Our family really enjoyed the food, and prices were reasonable, especially with kids eating free on Sunday. In addition, the Eductional Foundation of Dexter was scheduled to have their annual auction fundraiser there on March 19 (<a href="http://www.efdexter.org/pages/8/index.htm)" rel='nofollow'>http://www.efdexter.org/pages/8/index.htm)</a>. Hopefully they'll be able to find another venue.
Bob Martel
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 9:12 p.m.
Reread the article Meg, AA.com is refunding all the money.
John B.
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 7:54 p.m.
We drove by this place Wednesday night and my wife commented that it was oddly dark inside. I've never eaten there, so I don't know anything specific about the establishment or its food. Dexter needs more good dining options, though, so it is unfortunate to see one less (now). However, the closing is not a big surprise to me. When it opened, I thought it would be a tough sell, and guessed that it wouldn't last more than a couple years or so. Times were already tough back then, and often timing is everything. I suspect that a lot of businesses that opened in/around 2008 are struggling to hang on right now. You can do most everything right, and still lose your business. Additionally, any business (in general) that is higher-priced than their competition has it especially tough now, and needs to work even harder to justify that level of pricing (than they needed to just a few years ago).
Ignatz
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 7:41 p.m.
That's really bizarre that it was so popular (or was it?), that all those folks picked up on The Real Deal. Now it's closed.