The father of the Ace Hotel chain founder Alex Calderwood, who died of an apparent drug overdose, is battling his son’s business partner for his son’s stake in the hip hospitality empire.
Calderwood, 47, was found dead in one of his hotel rooms in November 2013 surrounded by bottles of booze and a makeshift crack pipe, according to reports.
“Since then, Alex’s former business partner has wrongfully excluded Alex’s father, Tom — the personal representative of Alex’s estate — from any role in managing the company Alex founded,” according to Tom Calderwood’s suit.
The estate controls 51.74 percent of Ace Group International, the Manhattan Supreme Court filing states.
Tom says his son’s “legacy is at stake” if Tom can’t wrest control of the business from partner Stefanos Economou, who invested $10 million in the business in 2011.
But Economou hasn’t let Tom Calderwood see the company books or given him a seat at the management table, the suit says.
The Ace hotels are known for their offbeat decor including vintage furniture, graffiti and turntables.
The hotels — in New York City, Seattle, Portland, Palm Beach, LA, London and Panama — draw celebrities like Olivia Munn, Aziz Ansari and Liv Tyler.
A rep for Economou did not immediately comment.