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A recently filed lawsuit accuses cannabis retailer Surterra Wellness of skipping out on corporate office space in Tampa while still owing nearly $1.3 million in unpaid back and future rent.
According to a complaint filed Friday in Hillsborough County Court, Surterra signed a seven-year lease for two suites at an office tower near the Tampa International Airport at a monthly rate scheduled to increase from $29,362 a month to $36,109.73 a month.
However, as the Tampa Bay Business Journal reported, the company attempted to skip out on the lease in 2024 while also shielding its liabilities from creditors via a corporate name change and restructuring.
The suit, filed by Taurus Investment Holdings, a real-estate firm based in South Florida, seeks both owed rent and a ruling from a judge that Surterra, which rebranded to Parallel in 2019, are the same entity.
Neither party commented to the Journal.
Surterra Wellness skipped out on headquarters lease, lawsuit claims
Privately held Surterra Wellness, which still operates 45 medical marijuana dispensaries in Florida, was in 2019 pursuing ambitious international deals under the supervision of then-CEO William “Beau” Wrigley Jr., heir to a chewing-gum fortune.
Under Wrigley, who took over as CEO in 2018 after leading an $65 million investment round, the company rebranded itself to Parallel and rapidly expanded into five states, opening retail dispensaries under the Goodblend brand in Pennsylvania.
According to the suit, the new company located its headquarters at the Tampa building.
However, Wrigley stepped down as CEO in 2021 after a plan to take the company public at a $1.9 billion valuation via a special acquisition company (SPAC) fell apart.
Wrigley was later sued by his former investors.
Landlords pursuing Surterra/Parallel across the country
Meanwhile, landlords across the country began pursuing the company for unpaid rent, including $5.8 million in alleged missed rent payments claimed by Innovative Industrial Properties, Goodblend’s former landlord in Pittsburgh.
A judge in Pennsylvania ordered Goodblend dissolved in 2023.
According to the Florida lawsuit, Surterra told its landlord in Tampa that it would be leaving the office park on Sept. 1, 2024, despite the lease not expiring until Dec. 31, 2026.
Combined with back rent and future obligations, Taurus claims to be owed $1.3 million, according to the suit.
Tauras repossessed the real estate in May.
A hearing in the case is scheduled for March, according to a court docket.
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