A controversial Rhode Island businessman wants to buy the troubled Serenata Beach Club at auction this month — but a group of members is scrambling to outbid him, The Citizen has learned.
Providence-based Michael Mota, who was brought in to manage the Ponte Vedra Beach oceanfront property in February, has told both staffers and members that he plans to purchase the club when it goes up for grabs later this month.
But members dissatisfied with his stewardship are trying to gather resources for an 11th-hour attempt to outbid him.
Meanwhile, several employees told The Citizen that they’re currently owed thousands in back pay and that Mota dissembles when pressed on the issue.
The mafia aficionado has been sued by several creditors from prior ventures and leases a Providence events venue, The Skyline, that’s currently facing eviction, according to reports.
A deceased man was found inside the shuttered business late last month, Providence TV station WJAR reported.
Mota told local outlets that the deceased man was a longtime maintenance staffer who suffered from a serious disease.
He was also questioned by Florida authorities for chopping down protected mangroves last year at a Port St. Lucie resort he had an interest in, according to The Boston Globe. He has denied any involvement.
The entrepreneur has been involved in a variety of enterprises, serving as executive producer of a film on late Gambino mob boss John Gotti and organizing Cosa Nostra-themed fan conventions.
Mota recently sued the Globe for a long series of critical articles, with his attorneys arguing that the outlet has been waging an unfair vendetta against him.
Frequently pictured with celebrities from the late actor John Gandolfini to boxer Mike Tyson, Mota maintains that he’s been mischaracterized in the press, and has a record of entrepreneurial success.
He didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
The Serenata’s former owners, Molly and Jeffrey Butler, a pair of St. Augustine-based realtors, were forced to relinquish control after piling up $14 million in debt.
Members complained that the club would routinely close for extended periods under their reign, while employees said they weren’t paid for their work.
Whille the Butlers appear to have been sidelined, staffers told The Citizen that they’re still owed backpay and have little recourse.
Mota did not respond to a request for comment, but has told outlets that the employees will be made whole once the Serenata auction process is completed on September 12.
