COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The owner of East Market has filed a complaint against one of its former vendors, claiming the business had not been paying its rent, according to court documents. 

The complaint, filed in Franklin County Municipal Court in August by Trolley East Market, alleges the Butcher and Grocer owes Trolley East Market more than $20,000 in rent. The locally sourced meat, cheese and grocery vendor closed its East Market location on Aug. 16, according to its social media.

Five months earlier, Trolley East Market had served the Butcher and Grocer an eviction notice in March — asking that it vacate its seven stalls in the food hall for “non-payment of rent” purposes, according to court documents. The market and the vendor then entered into a forbearance agreement, giving the Butcher and Grocer at least another month. 

When the market never received those rent payments, the complaint alleged, the market filed a lawsuit, the day before the Butcher and Grocer closed. The Butcher and Grocer’s original location is still at Grandview Heights at 1089 W. First Ave. 

In its defense and counterclaim filing, the Butcher and Grocer denied the allegation that it owed any rent — alleging that it is “entitled to 236 days free rent, which amounts to $91,105.44.” 

Although its five-year lease on the East Market stalls was set to start in August 2021, the counter complaint alleges that East Market was not ready for the Butcher and Grocer to take over its stall until well into 2022. 

“Instead, (the) landlord is ignoring its obligations under the lease with regard to free rent, and is now attempting to evict (the) tenant,” the counter complaint read. 

Attorneys for both Trolley East Market and the Butcher and Grocer did not respond to a request for comment as of Monday evening. 

The August complaint is not the first time Trolley East Market has filed against one of its former tenants. In February, it filed a complaint against The Pit BBQ for alleged breach of contract, claiming it vacated a two-year lease early and failed to pay any of the provisions laid out in that agreement.