A last ditch effort by a Boston firm to try and wrestle away the $7 million food and beverage contract for the Midwest Airlines Center from a Chicago catering firm failed Thursday when the Chicago firm reached a tentative agreement on the controversial contract.

“The best thing we can do is get this thing behind us and move on because it has been so embarrassing,” said a Wisconsin Center District Board member. “I’ve never been involved in process that has been this screwed up.”

The Wisconsin Center District Board on May 9 directed District staff to begin negotiations with Levy Restaurants. In making that decision, the board decided against the recommendation of a four-person subcommittee that reviewed the proposals for the contract. The subcommittee recommended awarding the contract to Distinctive Gourmet, headed by three employees that used to work for the catering company that has the current contract, despite suggestions that convention center staff was trying to steer them the contract.

Several representatives from Distinctive Gourmet attended a special Wisconsin Center Board meeting Thursday where several Board members believe there would be an attempt to end contract negotiations with Levy Restaurants and instead begin contract discussions with Distinctive Gourmet.

However, District staff and Levy officials met behind closed doors before the mid-morning meeting and made substantial progress towards an agreement, with one source saying District officials had directed lawyers to draft a final agreement. Then the District’s Finance & Personnel Committee, on a 5-4 vote, refused to even allow Distinctive Gourmet representatives a chance to address the board, saying they were close to an agreement with Levy Restaurants

Franklyn Gimbel, chairman of the Wisconsin Center Board, said staff had invited Distinctive Gourmet to the hastily called meeting because they were at “an impasse” in contract negotiations with Levy. However, another Board member, said he had been told by District staff that Distinctive Gourmet officials just happened to be traveling through Milwaukee and came to the meeting on their own.

“We were at an impasse several days ago and it was entirely possible that we were going to ask the Board to move to the second firm,” Gimbel said. “But we have had substantial movement in recent days and we are very close to getting it done.”

Gimbel indicated the sticking point had been the management fee. During the convoluted bidding process, there had been several fee estimates provided by the four firms that bid on the contract. Levy had never changed its original fee of $175,000 a year. However, Distinctive Gourmet twice changed its fee from an original number of $350,000 a year to $125,000 a year.

“We are much happier with the fee and I think we can finally put this behind us,” Gimbel said. But the story may not have ended Thursday for Distinctive Gourmet.

Milwaukee Alderman Marvin Pratt, a member of the District Board, vowed again Thursday to file a lawsuit against the company for slander.

In trying to stop the award to Levy, representatives of Distinctive Gourmet had alleged that Pratt, president of the Milwaukee Common Council, went to great lengths to steer the contract to Levy. In its petition filed in Milwaukee County Circuit Court last week, Distinctive Gourmet alleged that Pratt had been a guest of Levy’s at the NCAA Final Four in New Orleans in March and also had private meetings with Levy representatives.

Pratt has strongly denied he attended the basketball games with Levy, saying he bought his tickets through Marquette University. Levy officials have also said they were not even at the game and do not have any food contracts in New Orleans.

“I have contacted an attorney and told him to begin the process of bringing a lawsuit against Distinctive Gourmet,” Pratt said. “Their action and allegations were ridiculous.”

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