Mayor Emery Doughtie hopes to have a meeting with the city manager and attorney this week to see what and how long it will take to get the Roanoke Rapids Theatre back in the city’s control.

“We need to get something moving,” the mayor said today. “I’m getting discouraged. We’re losing credibility with the citizens. If the answer is there is nothing we can do then I want to be told that. If it is a closed meeting I want him (the city attorney) to tell us what we can tell the citizens in the next 10 days.”

While Doughtie has heard rumblings Lafayette Gatling and his attorneys are seeking another 30 days to study the city’s lawsuit to retake the theater, the mayor said he hopes the court won’t allow that. “It’s been about 50 days (since the city filed the lawsuit in June).”

Doughtie said he believes the city considered every possibility and thoroughly studied suing Gatling before filing the lawsuit. “We tried very hard to cover all our bases on that.”

The seven page civil lawsuit contains four evidence exhibits which include the notice ending Gatling’s contract with the city, a letter demanding the property and past due rent back, the lease agreement with the city and the contract for Gatling and L&M Hospitality to buy the 8.822 acres of land on which the venue is located.

The city contends in the lawsuit it entered valid contracts with Gatling through the lease and agreement to buy the land. The city says it has complied with the terms of the documents and that Gatling has committed material breaches of the documents while the city has given notice they have not been corrected.