BY JENNIFER CABRERA
ALACHUA, Fla. – Axel Giaccone, owner of the Creek’s 19th restaurant located in the clubhouse of the Turkey Creek Golf Course, says Turkey Creek Golf LLC is trying to force him out of his lease; he told Alachua Chronicle, “I have a contract. There are four years left on my lease. I’m not going to be bullied – I live in this community.”
Giaccone, who lives in Turkey Creek, opened the restaurant in 2020, when there were COVID restrictions on businesses, and the restaurant only provided take-out at first. Since then, Giaccone has built it into a thriving restaurant patronized by both golfers and residents of the neighborhood. The lease was renewed for five years on January 31, 2023.
Turkey Creek Golf LLC leases the Turkey Creek Golf Course clubhouse from the Turkey Creek Master Owners Association (the homeowners’ association for Turkey Creek residents) and sub-leases the restaurant portion to Creek’s 19th; Giaccone says officers of Turkey Creek Golf started trying to push him out last September; Turkey Creek Golf says Giaccone violated the lease when Giaccone’s wife Debbie allegedly got into a physical altercation with a customer while she was intoxicated.