Ole' Hardwood Fire Still Under Investigation

We weren't sure if this was going to be swept under the rug or whether or not we would ever hear another peep about the Ole' Hardwood fire (see ole' sloopin "ole' charwood" article about the fire), but we found this article in the Chicago Journal about the investigation surrounding the fire well done and extremely interesting. We especially liked the part towards the end that talks about the general managers experience:

“Everything shady started after Thanksgiving,” said Alexander Carlin, the former general manager and sommelier of Ole’ Hardwood, who said he quit in December.

Carlin said the restaurant had problems paying its food suppliers, so the restaurant would sometimes run out of menu items. On top of that, Carlin claimed his boss wasn’t paying the employees either.

So in December, Carlin said he’d had enough and quit.

“I knew I had to leave the sinking ship,” said Carlin. “The operation put undue and unreasonable strain on my employees financially, and procedurally that I did not feel comfortable taking part in.”

Upon leaving, Carlin says the owner asked him to sign a confidentiality agreement, which he declined to sign until he was paid, he said.

Ten days later, the building went up in flames.