Patterson prevails in hotel tax case

In a final ruling, Stanislaus Superior Court Judge Roger Beauchesne said the city of Patterson is owed $237,147 in unpaid taxes from Patterson Hotel Associates.

In 2011, the city sued the hotel owner to collect taxes, going back to 2007, from the Best Western at the Villa Del Lago commercial center near Sperry Avenue and Interstate 5. Dominic Speno, the hotel owner and developer of Villa Del Lago, had claimed the city should collect the unpaid hotel taxes from Sanjay Bakshi, who managed the hotel and was convicted in 2009 of embezzling money from the business.

The judge also ruled against Speno’s cross-complaint that suggested the city owed him $4 million for Villa Del Lago’s stormwater improvements.

City Attorney Tom Hallinan said the city could seek to collect up to $1 million from the hotel owner when attorney fees and expert witness costs are included. The city was represented by attorneys from Sacramento-based Churchwell White LLP. Speno can appeal the ruling.

This story was originally published May 11, 2015 at 5:56 PM with the headline "Patterson prevails in hotel tax case."