Tampa Bay area mayor faces judgment

A mall deal gone bad in Pinellas County has a developer wanting to collect a $5.2 million judgment, and the mayor of a tiny (and tony) beach town allegedly hasn't yet paid.

John Sabow, who managed the redevelopment of the Shoppes at Park Place in Pinellas Park, won an initial judgment against property owner Boulder Venture South for his share of the deal. But Sabow contends he never received the money from Boulder.

Now Sabow is going after Boulder's owners individually in court. That includes Robert Schmidt Jr., who is the mayor of Belleair Shore, a town of just a little more than 100 people about 13 miles northwest of the shopping center. Schmidt has been mayor since last year.

No longer willing to wait for his money, Sabow filed a lawsuit in Pinellas County court against Schmidt, his wife, Kelly Schmidt, and another company in the deal, KB Parkside LLC.
Sabow had been promised nearly one-third of the development's value when he joined to redevelop the 680,000-square-foot complex in 2004, according to court records. What Boulder failed to promise, however, was when Sabow would get the money.

A judge decided in favor of Sabow's argument that he can't be allowed to wait any longer and awarded him the judgment. Robert Schmidt's attorney's couldn't be reached to comment on the decision.

Shoppes at Park Place was formerly known as Pinellas Square Mall. It was built in 1977, and Boulder bought it in 2004 for $12 million.