Steve Latzanakis, owner of the Dunkin' Donuts franchise, has been bargaining for the first opportunity to renegotiate--termed the right of first refusal--but has been unsuccessful in securing anything in writing thus far.

"We're thinking about starting a petition so that we can have the right of first refusal," Latzanakis said.

"The Tasty was offered the chance to come back in, but the owner didn't want to, because he felt the image had changed, plus he didn't want to pay the higher rent. We're not like that.... Rent is not an issue, it's the option to come back in that we want," he said.

Latzanakis may lose his affiliation with Dunkin' Donuts because he said the parent corporation wants to renovate the store immediately instead of waiting for a deal which might not come through.

"Right now we're having a problem with the Dunkin' Donuts corporation. They're putting us out of business faster than the developers. They feel the image we present now isn't up to their standards, even after Good Will Hunting and continually rising sales," Latzanakis said.

"They're threatening to pull the rug out from under us, meaning we'd have to go independent. We'll know by next week."

Officials at Dunkin' Donuts were not available for comment.