DAVENPORT, Iowa (KWQC) – They say you can’t fight City Hall, but Jim Capranos did and won.

This week a judge ruled in his favor in a case that threatened to put his company, JC Landscaping and Maintenance, out of business and his 40 employees out of work.

“To me, it was a crazy deal that was happening,” he said. “Out of the clear blue when you’re here for 25 years, the city knows you’re here and then they want you to move your business.”

In 2021, the city said that his shop in west Davenport wasn’t zoned for his landscaping and snow-removal company – even though Capronos has been doing business at that location for years.

The city wanted him shut down. But Capranos sued to protect his small business.

In his nine-page ruling against the city, the judge emphasized that the city had issued Capranos numerous business licenses since 2005. It placed business entrance signs on the road. The city even hired Capranos to do landscaping work while the case was still pending.

Capranos said the city has better things to do than target a small business.

“I didn’t understand,” he said. “They have a building collapse downtown. They have bigger fish to fry than to bother with a small business.”

What’s next for Capranos and his employees?

“Getting ready for snow removal,” he said. Continuing the business.”

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