ST. PETE, Fla. — Couples were left scrambling to find a new wedding venue after a St. Petersburg venue suddenly closed earlier this month.
Red Mesa Catina in St. Petersburg and the event space upstairs closed in June.
Veytia Ventures operated the Red Mesa Catina and Red Mesa Events. The company filed for bankruptcy in early June.
WATCH: Couples receive refunds for wedding deposits after St. Petersburg venue suddenly closes
The company said in a news release that customers who booked the venue have been issued a refund.
Alisson Tello had a wedding planned at the venue on 3rd Street South in September. We first spoke to her earlier in June.
We followed up with her, and since then, she has secured a new venue. She has also received her deposit back from Red Mesa Events.
“I don’t think I can put into words, it feels like the most reassuring thing, and I am very grateful that we were able to come to this conclusion, getting our money,” said Tello.
The company cited back-to-back hurricanes and the temporary closure of Tropicana Field as reasons for the closure.
Kathleen DiSanto is the company’s attorney.
“I think it was further complicated by the hurricanes that plagued Tampa Bay especially the St. Pete area, you know, with the Trop being out for all of the 2025 baseball season, obviously, that really hurt the foot traffic and was made it difficult for the debtor to continue to operate,” said Kathleen DiSanto, attorney representing Red Mesa Events.
DiSanto said that in bankruptcy cases, clients often lose their deposits, but Red Mesa Events kept customer deposits separate from its operating accounts. A judge ruled that deposits could be returned to clients.
“I mean the bankruptcy judge raved about this is really a unicorn in the bankruptcy process and most times the deposit dollars are put in an operating account and they’re not able to refunded,” she said.
Pete Veytia is Chief Operating Officer of Red Mesa Restaurant Group.
“Everybody wanted to make sure that the guests got their deposits back. That was first and foremost, but we couldn’t say anything, and we weren’t allowed to say anything or do anything until the judge ruled on that and that’s why we had to hold it close to our chest...there’s no easy way of ending this, but we wanted to make sure that the guests were taken care of. That was our first and foremost priority on this,” said Veytia.
The closures only impact Red Mesa Cantina and Red Mesa Event Spaces.
Red Mesa Restaurant, Mercado Edge District, and Mercado West remain open.
These are separate businesses with different operations and management structures.
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