Two North Austin bars—outdoor music venue Weirdos and longtime karaoke bar Canary Hut Pub—both closed during the Jan. 26–27 weekend.

The Canary Hut Pub, located at 11005 Burnet Road, Ste. 108, was a North Austin staple for more than 20 years. A post on the bar's Facebook page indicated its last night of business was Jan. 26 and that the owners hoped to move in to another location in the next few months. Attempts to contact the owners were not successful.

Weirdos, which was located on 2.6 acres south of Parmer Lane at 12408 N. MoPac, closed Jan. 27. Jim Nias, attorney for property owner Sharon Ma, said the business was evicted Jan. 30 for not paying rent and that Travis County constables were on the property ensuring the business moved out and that locks were changed.

Jesse Fortney, who opened Weirdos with his mother, Cecelia, in January 2010, said ongoing permit and compliance issues with property owner Sharon Ma and the City of Austin also led to the venue's closure.

"Our landlord is refusing to cooperate with us and the City of Austin to become compliant, and we can't put in any more money," Fortney said.

He said Ma led them to believe they could use the restaurant, backyard, outdoor patio and as much parking as they wanted, but the Fortneys found out that was not the case when the city told them the property was not zoned properly and did not have the necessary permits.

"Our business was practically taken away from us," Fortney said. "We wanted to be an outdoor live music venue with volleyball."

Colten Smith, attorney for Weird Times LLC, the operator of Weirdos, said the Fortneys spent about $500,000 rezoning the property and making improvements to make it compliant. He said the city had requested an easement agreement because the property is located in a 100-year flood plain. Without the agreement, the Fortneys could only use the interior of the building and 14 parking spaces.

Smith said Ma has refused to sign the easement agreement, and the Fortneys decided to withhold rent until she did so. They also filed a lawsuit in April against her for breach of contract because the Fortneys could not use the property as indicated in the lease, and for fraudulently inducing them into signing the contract because the Fortneys said Ma lied to them about the permitting and parking issues.

Smith said he anticipates the case going to trial by the end of 2013 and that the Fortneys would like to have the property back and be compensated for the money they spent to get it compliant.

Nias said the claims in the lawsuit are not true and that the original lease agreement was to use the property only as a restaurant. He said that 51 percent of the revenue must come from food but that the Fortneys turned the business into a bar and predominantly sold alcohol while having large music events.

Ma has owned the property for 40 years, and for 30 of those years operated the property as a Chinese restaurant called Great Wall, Nias said. He said she is in her 80s and has been leasing out the property.

In regard to the easement issue, he said the Fortneys wanted Ma to dedicate about one-third of property to the city as a drainage easement, which she refused to do.

"It seemed pretty extreme when there are other ways to deal with drainage," Nias said.

Last August, Ma filed a lawsuit against the Fortneys to evict them for not paying rent. A judge in the justice of the peace court agreed with Ma, and Weirdos was evicted. Nias said the Fortneys have not paid rent in seven months and owe Ma about $100,000 in back rent and property taxes for 2011–12. He does not anticipate they will pay.

Nias said the property is for sale, and details on Realty Austin's website indicate she is asking $2.8 million for the site.

Fortney said he would like to open another venue but would not name it Weirdos unless the concept was the same.

"We're hoping to win the property back," he said.