A court dispute between mayoral candidate Dar Thompson and the landlord for one of his former World Gym locations has been settled.

James Royal of Aberdeen Village Associates filed the court action to have Thompson’s World Gym evicted from the Aberdeen Village Shopping Center because it was supposed to vacate the building by Aug. 15.

In the settlement, Thompson agreed to pay $24,000 in back rent for the months of August and September, though he said the rent was paid on time and the checks were returned to him by Royal. Thompson deposited the money with the clerk of court in an escrow account so payment could be made immediately.

Thompson said in the seven years he has been at the location, he has never been late with a rent payment.

Thompson also agreed to pay $8,400 in rent for the remaining three weeks in October that the club remained in the Aberdeen location along with $91 in court costs. The premises had to be vacated by October 21, according to the settlement.

The settlement came after Thompson appealed a judgment for $18,000 that was originally entered in Fayette County Magistrate Court; that judgment included a late September date for Thompson to relinquish the premises. After Thompson filed the appeal, sending the matter to Fayette Superior Court, Aberdeen Village officials came to Thompson to broker the settlement, he said.

Thompson said Monday that the whole situation was just “a bump in the road” that sometimes happens when running a business.

“We all agreed to terms so we could move on. We solved the problem,” Thompson said.

Thompson said he didn’t think the legal issue would cause him difficulties in the election; to the contrary he thinks it might help his campaign because it proves he can tackle a tough issue and move on.

Thompson said the main reason he couldn’t get out of the Aberdeen location earlier was due to the delayed opening of his new World Gym location on Westpark Drive.

“At the end of the day, it was pretty much because we were waiting for the new building to be finished,” Thompson said.

Thompson noted that he and Royal are still friends and Royal and his wife still work out at World Gym.

“We’re still friends. We’re not enemies,” Thompson said.

Thompson said although he would like to win the mayor’s race, he wants people to vote for the candidate they think is right for the job.

“I think I’m the best choice, but maybe I’m not,” Thompson said.

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