Wyndham joins city pressure on Knights Inn and threatens a harsh penalty, source says

Wyndham Hotel Group has joined the city of Fort Worth in warning Knights Inn owner Anil Patidar to bring his Las Vegas Trail-area hotel into compliance quickly or risk penalties that could ultimately put him out of business.

In a statement issued to the Star-Telegram, Wyndham said it is “deeply troubled by the allegations surrounding this hotel,” and “while we do not own or operate this hotel, please know we are treating this matter with the seriousness it deserves and addressing it with the hotel’s owner.”

A Wyndham spokesman said he could not disclose the nature of the communication with Patidar; however a source with knowledge of the situation said Wyndham’s compliance division sent a letter to Patidar earlier this month urging him to show immediate progress in meeting compliance standards. If he fails to do so, Wyndham will consider revoking his license to use the Knights Inn brand name.

Messages left with Patidar were not returned.

For more than a decade, the Knights Inn located on the eastbound Interstate 30 service road at the north end of Las Vegas Trail has continuously failed to meet city code compliance standards, and has frustrated police by not cooperating to deter criminal activity on the premises.

Patidar owns the hotel; however, Wyndham Hotel Group owns the brand name and reserves the right to revoke the license to operate under the name.

Wyndham’s statement came months after being unresponsive to numerous Star-Telegram inquiries and eight days after a Star-Telegram report exposed the significant public health and safety issues at the motel, which serves a large low-income population that often resides there long-term. An industry source described the hotel as more of a “transitional housing outlet” for many who cannot afford permanent housing.

On Oct. 5, Patidar was summoned to City Hall for a last-chance meeting with two city attorneys, Fort Worth police and code compliance officials. They made recommendations for Patidar to follow, and threatened to file a nuisance-abatement lawsuit if he does not. A successful lawsuit would close Knights Inn for one year.

“What we’re generally after is for them to clean up the property, both in terms of the criminal activity and in terms of the code compliance issues,” Senior Assistant City Attorney Chris Mosley said after the 90-minute meeting.

The city’s attention on Knights Inn is part of an overall Las Vegas Trail Revitalization Project headed by new Councilman Brian Byrd. The committee will hold its first public meeting at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday at Birchman Baptist Church. An evening meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Nov. 13 at a site to be determined.

The Texas Hotel and Lodging Association is no stranger to the ongoing problems at Knights Inn. Association president Scott Joslove said he has contacted Fort Worth officials and offered cooperation.

“We worked with that hotel a number of years ago when the city identified a group of hotels they felt were having a substantial number of code violations,” Joslove said. “In the case of this hotel, my memory is that they turned it around for a short period of time, but the problems reappeared shortly thereafter.”

Such has been the nature of the Knights Inn owner. Code compliance deems the motel as the city’s longtime top offender. Currently eight rooms at Knights Inn are closed for compliance violations, down from 11 a few months ago. Over the last year, 27 rooms at the motel have been closed.

This story was originally published October 23, 2017 at 11:24 AM with the headline "Wyndham joins city pressure on Knights Inn and threatens a harsh penalty, source says."