Narva moves to end Ro-Ro art club lease over unpaid rent

Narva City Government has begun proceedings to terminate the lease of the Ro-Ro art club over unpaid rent, with the debt and current charges reaching 7,164.55 euros by October, ERR reported. The city says the club’s operator has not responded to its latest warnings.

OÜ Puhtus ja Hoolitsus, which runs the art club, has rented city-owned premises since the summer of 2022. The city lowered the rent for the winter months, from 811.51 euros per month in summer to 165 euros in winter, but payment difficulties began during the first year of the lease.

The city has repeatedly offered the operator payment schedules. The company paid part of the debt in spring and summer, but has not responded to reminders and proposals sent since July or requested a new payment plan, the city government said.

The city prepared a notice to terminate the lease on October 16 and gave the company until October 31 to meet its financial obligations. Deputy Mayor Oleg Karpikov said the debt had accumulated over several years, rather than resulting from a one-off breach. The city said it must protect its finances and treat tenants equally, regardless of their public profile or line of work.

Narva is also preparing to terminate leases with Lounge Cafe OÜ, which operates a summer café on the Narva River promenade and owed 4,110 euros in October, and the non-profit Young & Active. The city has already ended its lease with the non-profit Tribune, while some other tenants paid their debts after receiving warnings.

Narva has about 200 paid land and premises leases. The city’s municipal services department estimates that around five percent of tenants experience payment difficulties, with debts typically increasing around the start of the heating season in late summer and autumn.