By Bill McCleery

bill.mccleery@indystar.com

State officials have closed a popular Cajun restaurant on Indianapolis’ Eastside after the business fell behind on taxes.

The operators of Papa Roux were working with state officials to catch up with payments the restaurant failed to make in 2012, manager Art Bouvier said, when officials suddenly closed them down. His wife, Colleen Kenna-Bouvier, is the restaurant’s owner.

“The public hears ‘tax troubles’ and immediately assumes the owners somehow steal the money and go to the Bahamas,” Bouvier said in an email. “Nothing could be further from the truth. We are current on new obligations with (the Indiana Department of Revenue). This is about a past amount that we’d been working with them on for months.”

Bouvier was surprised when the order came to close shop.

“One day we're on a payment plan,” he said, “and the next we’re told to cough up in full or else, with no option to go back to the payment plan.”

A spokesman for the Indiana Department of Revenue said he cannot comment on individual cases.

“When a business taxpayer gets in arrears in sales tax and withholding tax, there comes a point, often after about 90 days, that if the business has not responded to a series of notifications, that we are forced to do something a little more drastic,” said Bob Dittmer, the spokesman. “That is to revoke the business’s registered retail merchant certificate. Without that, they can no longer conduct retail sales or they are in violation of the law.”

Bouvier said the restaurant has stayed current on its tax obligations since making mistakes in its filing practices in 2012. On Monday, the business received a letter from state officials stating the business needed to take action immediately to avoid closure. Bouvier said he tried without success to reach officials by telephone. Then, on Thursday, Bouvier, while out of state, received a phone call from employees telling him state officials were at the restaurant to shut it down.

“I'm suspicious of the timing of such harsh bully tactics,” Bouvier said.

Bouvier said officials initially told him the business must pay $2,300 immediately to stay open. He and his wife were prepared to do that, he said. Then, however, state officials told the Bouviers they could no longer participate in the repayment plan that had been established and would have to pay all back taxes owed immediately.

Bouvier declined to disclose exactly how much the restaurant owes in back taxes.

A fundraising campaign begun by customers sets $30,000 as the target amount for enabling the re-opening of Papa Roux. A native of New Orleans, Bouvier opened the restaurant in 2007, after moving to Indianapolis about seven years earlier.

Today, another business — Chef JJ’s Backyard Bistro — is selling Papa Roux items from a food truck parked near the restaurant at 8950 E. 10th St., according to Papa Roux’s Facebook page.

“As you know, all of our product is fresh and therefore must be sold before the weekend,” the post stated.

In another post, Papa Roux staff stated: “Note to any sneaky government moles: The Roux is truly and legitimately not conducting any business whatsoever until further notice. But our employees have obligations, and whether you care about them or not, WE DO. So they're working for Chef JJ tomorrow.”

Bouvier made clear today — the restaurant’s first full day of forced closure — that he and his wife want to get back to business as soon as possible — if they can figure out how.

“We're current on all new obligations and making good on old ones,” he said in a Facebook post. “But if we can't open for business, that all stops immediately. The city loses money, the state loses money. My employees lose money. You lose lunch. I fail to see the common sense in ANY of this.”

Call Star reporter Bill McCleery at (317) 444-6083. Follow him on Twitter: @BillMcCleery01.