State shutters Slicks Garage in Palmetto for paperwork problem

PALMETTO --

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services posted a notice Friday at Slicks Garage in downtown Palmetto declaring the car customizing shop closed. The closure comes as Slicks is developing a second garage location in Miami expected to be the site of a television show featuring the shop's vehicle customizations.

The Palmetto shop, 923 Fifth St. W., has cut a high profile in recent years. Its high-end, classic car customizations have been featured on Discovery Channel's "Monster Garage," Tuff TV's "Tail Fins and Chrome" and a full season of Discovery's "Highway to Sell." The closure came as a surprise to Jane Hunter, co-owner of Slicks and wife of the business' lead mechanic, who goes by the moniker "Slick." She learned of the notice posted on the garage's front door from a shop employee, who called her in Miami to tell her the news.

By early afternoon Friday, Hunter had been unable to get in touch with officials at the Department of Consumer Services to get an explanation of the situation. However, she said she believes the closure notice stems from a misunderstanding over the format and content of the shop's invoicing and estimating forms.

She said Slicks has had difficulty in drawing up forms that accommodate the full detail of a $50,000 to $100,000 customization, a typical slate of work for the shop. State statute requires Florida mechanics to provide customers with estimates for work expected to cost more than $100.

Hunter said the form Slicks uses does provide the basic information the state requires. However, she said it's not possible to provide a high level of detail on the costs associated with a complete customization that could require an engine, transmission, paint, bodywork and a mix of new, used and reconditioned parts.

In addition, she said Slicks customers know there are a lot of unknowns when they bring a car in for an overhaul.

"The customers that we're dealing with are very experienced car guys," Hunter said.

Hunter said she thought she had negotiated away any problems with the garage paperwork in January. The closure notice came without notice by phone or email. Hunter acknowledged the state may have had trouble contacting her as the Palmetto garage's phone number is disconnected and she and Slick have spent most of their time in Miami since April.

Severe punishment

Although the Palmetto garage has been largely inactive during that time, she said the closure notice is severe punishment.

"They don't like how a piece of paper is formatted and they want to close down a multimillion dollar business," she said.

Officials with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services did not respond to a request to comment on the situation in time to make the Herald's deadline Friday.

Despite the regulatory hiccup, Hunter and Slick plan to remain in business in Palmetto and Miami. She said they are planning to buy their leased Palmetto shop and the nearly 2 acres it sits on. She said the shop will be used to do paint and body work and smaller restorations.

The posted closure notice is not out of keeping with the image Slicks' owners have been portraying at the shop over the past few months. Hunter said she and Slick want the shop to look closed because it's drawn too many people interested in having a peek at the cars and television production.

Those cars have been a bone of contention with city officials. Palmetto City Hall has required the business to screen the car bodies it stores in its lot with fencing. The city's mayor, Shirley Groover Bryant, said last year the city has received complains about the look of the cars, many of which are in salvage condition.

The new Miami shop, which is just north of Miami International Airport, will host Slicks' television work while the shop's regular customer work will be done in Palmetto, Hunter said. Hunter said she and Slick are in talks with three production companies for a potential new television series based on vehicle customization.

Matt M. Johnson, Herald business reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7027 or on Twitter @MattAtBradenton.

This story was originally published August 29, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "State shutters Slicks Garage in Palmetto for paperwork problem."