Employees at the Canyon 66 Restaurant and Lounge at the financially troubled Ramada Kingman in Kingman, Arizona, saw their paychecks bounce again this past week.
According to the Kingman Daily Miner:
Marina Brown, a former server at Canyon 66, said she worked there until this week and was issued paychecks that can’t be cashed, including her tips.
Joel and Noble Zubaid, owners of the Ramada Inn and Canyon 66, filed for bankruptcy in Riverside, California, in March, and the business was placed under receivership with Advanced Management and Investment.
General Manager Sultan Abbas was retained by AMI to reopen the hotel and restaurant May 21, but he walked out on June 1 after learning that the Zubaid brothers were back in business, and receivership had changed to Tristar Hotel Group of Scottsdale. […]
“I was under the impression that we were not under Joel and Noble Zubaid,” Brown said Thursday. “I didn’t walk out. A few of us stayed and planned on working. Now Tristar (Hotel Group) management is there. We found out yesterday we couldn’t cash the checks. They’re very vague on information and wouldn’t tell us why we’re not being paid.”
Ramada Kingman and the adjoining Canyon 66 Restaurant and Lounge closed abruptly in late March.
The complex, formerly a Magnuson hotel, was rebranded as a Ramada and remodeled its restaurant and lounge in a Route 66 theme less than five years ago. According to a 2014 article in the Daily Miner, the Zubaid brothers bought the property at 3100 E. Andy Devine Ave. (aka Route 66) in 2013. A hotel had been at that site since at least the 1970s.
The Ramada Kingman played up Route 66 in its marketing, including soliciting images from Route 66 enthusiasts for a photo contest in 2016.
Abbas returned to manage the hotel after it reopened, but he told the newspaper he’s staying away until the Zubaids no longer control the business complex.
“These people shouldn’t be working in Kingman after all they did to us. I’d rather be homeless than work for their benefit in any way.”
Route 66 author researcher Jim Hinckley, who lives in Kingman, stated Monday in a Facebook post he’s urging Route 66 travelers in Kingman to stay at the Quality Inn instead.
I also recommend staying away from Ramada Kingman until things change there for good. If the owners treat their employees like dirt, how well would they treat overnight guests?
(Image of the Ramada Kingman’s swimming pool in 2016 via Facebook)