A popular Hyattsville, Md. wedding venue is apruptly shutting its doors, leaving some couples short thousands of dollars.
"We received an email from the Atrium at Treetops stating that any event after September 2013 will not be held or honored," groom-to-be Doug Johnson said.
A letter sent Aug. 26 by Atrium at Treetops' lawyers stated the company lost the right to conduct events at that locale.
"I was just heartbroken. You work so hard and you want that day to be perfect," bride-to-be Joi Grymes said.
The company offered to have the events switched to the West Bowie Village Hall. Those unsatisfied with the locale change would lose all their money -- in Johnson and Grymes' case, $6,000.
"I feel like we purchased a Lexus, then a Lexus somehow disappeared and they said, 'Oh, we have a '88 Chevrolet out there for you,'" Johnson said.
The couple has picked another venue with the help of a caterer, but others may not be so lucky. Another couple told News4 they were offered a ceremony, cocktail hour and a reception for the same price at Treetops -- but told they could only have the reception at the alternate location.
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"The harsh reality is that Treetops does not have sufficient funds to reimburse customers for amounts previously paid because those funds would have been generated from ongoing operations," the letter reads.
