City, Clear Channel extend spat over Shoreline revenue City, Clear Channel extend spat over Shoreline revenue (September 23, 2005)

By Jon Wiener

Clear Channel, the company that operates Shoreline Amphitheatre, has yet to formally respond to Mountain View's demand that it pay $3.6 million in back rent and penalties detailed under a city-sponsored audit.

The audit, released Aug. 29, found that Clear Channel and a subsidiary hid more than $20 million in revenue at Shoreline since 1999.

On Sept. 2, City Attorney Michael Martello sent Clear Channel a "notice of default," originally giving the media giant until Monday to pay the city 6.75 percent plus penalties. The letter stated that if the company did not meet the deadline, the city would consider "any or all remedies available," including evicting the media conglomerate and reopening the bidding process for other promoters.

Martello has since granted the company a two-week extension to respond to the letter, though he said he expects a resolution by the end of this week.

The warring sides have each filed lawsuits against each other. They are due to go to trial Feb. 6, though Martello said they could wind up in court sooner if the city tries to terminate the company's lease.

Clear Channel representatives have publicly said little about the audit, which they apparently were not expecting to be made public. Andy Levin, the company's vice president for government relations and communication, e-mailed the Voice in early September, calling the audit "misleading."

Matt Prieshoff, general manager of the amphitheater, last week echoed Levin's dispute of the audit's findings, but likewise refused to go into any detail, saying that the issue was under litigation.

"We've been honest and straightforward with the city and expect to be treated the same," said Prieshoff, who said he only saw a copy of the audit because members of the press passed it along to his company.

Prieshoff also said that some of the documents in question had not gone through the company's internal auditing process. He declined to comment on the auditors' claim that they were not allowed to question Clear Channel employees.

According to the city's auditors, Los Angeles-based Alix Partners, the figure owed could be even higher. The city's notice of default also included a demand for the additional documents.

E-mail Jon Wiener at jwiener@mv-voice.com

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