The crowds never materialized for Avenue B, and Mr. Stein found himself in a hole. By the end of 2001, Hudson Bank was after him for missed payments on a $1.3 million note. That case was settled after he received new loans from Commerce Bank, but in 2003, the City of Philadelphia sued him over $1.36 million in business, liquor, and wage taxes. Common Pleas Court ordered him to pay $68,000 a month to satisfy the debt. He filed for bankruptcy and closed Avenue B. Vendors were owed hundreds of thousands of dollars, and employees scrambled to settle tax issues on their own.