But Demong said Ewen must first resolve his bankruptcy settlement before discussion of a new deal can take place. "He needs to continue through his bankruptcy [action] to get his finances in order."

Ewen said that escalating city taxes and the recession compelled the garden store to shut down.

"We were forced out by Harvard," he said. "They sent us a quit notice. Their claim was that we owed them a substantial amount of back [payments]," he said.

Ewen said his market was crippled by Cambridge municipal taxes, which rose throughout the 1980s. Ewen said that Cambridge wrong-fully taxed his store at the same rate as a condominium, and won a suit against the city which returned to him a portion of the lost revenue.

The compensation he received after winning the lawsuit did not make up for his losses, Ewen said.

Demong, however, said Grower's Market failed to meet its rent payments. "We worked with him to reduce his rent obligation which, I might add, he has never been able to cover in its entirety," she said.

Ewen admitted he did not succeed in bargaining down his rent rates.

"We loved Cambridge," he said. "We just couldn't afford it."

Sewell Chan contributed to the reporting of this story.