Wichita, Genesis reach settlement in Ice Center lawsuit. Here are the details
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- City and Genesis settle: Genesis will pay $200,000 and drop a $1.8M counterclaim.
- City sued to recover about $425,000 of a $750,000 loan to Genesis from 2012.
- Wichita is still suing a contractor alleging costly equipment was damaged at ice center.
The city of Wichita has reached a settlement with Genesis Health Clubs over a public-private partnership that went sour at the Wichita Ice Center.
Genesis is set to pay $200,000 to the city and will end its $1.8 million counterclaim if the City Council approves the settlement Tuesday, according to the city legal department.
“...This settlement reflects the most fiscally responsible option for this component of the litigation,” city attorney Jennifer Magana said in a statement to The Eagle. “Balancing the uncertainty of litigation and cost recovery for the damages that have been deemed available under the Court’s interpretation of the 2012 Professional Management Services and Fitness Center Development Agreement, this is a compromise that prioritizes expedited taxpayer dollar recovery.”
The city sued Genesis in 2022 to try to recover about $425,000 that the company owes for city-funded improvements in the private health club Genesis ran on the second floor of the public facility.
The city loaned Genesis $750,000 as part of a 2012 agreement to remodel the second floor for the private health club and a bar, but the lawsuit claimed that Genesis failed to make payments and to properly manage the Ice Center.
It was supposed to pay back the loan within 10 years.
After the city sued Genesis, the company filed a counterclaim blaming the city for lack of upkeep at the facility.
Users during Genesis’ management of the center complained of blown-out lights, rotted floors in the bench area, recurring problems with the Zamboni used to smooth the ice and non-functioning scoreboards.
The city has since changed management at the Ice Center, and has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair mechanical issues with the ice rinks.
Genesis Health Clubs did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday morning.
Wichita has yet to settle with a second defendant in the Ice Center case, The Waldinger Corporation.
The city claimed that Waldinger, a contractor, did not properly fix mechanical issues at the ice center, causing some of the expensive equipment to fail. The equipment has since been replaced.
Waldinger denied those claims in court filings.
In a March 2024 filing, the city said nearly $2.7 million in damages had occurred at the Ice Center across all parties.
“[The settlement] will recoup some of the funds lost during the defendant’s operation of the Ice Center and positions the City to pursue significant additional damages from the second defendant,” Magana said.
The city had named a second contractor as a defendant in the case, but that business has since been dismissed from the city’s suit.
Contributing: Amy Renee Leiker of The Eagle
