Sitting in the dining room of Double Barrel Steak by David Burke at the Preserve Sporting Club & Residences in Richmond this past April , Paul Mihailides helps himself to a slab of crisp bacon that ’ s dangling from a clothespin and dripping grease .
I ’ ve been granted a behind-the-scenes experience to explore the Preserve , a woodland resort that offers sporting clays , an automated indoor shooting range , golf course , bird hunting fields , stocked fishing ponds , luxury accommodations and four-star dining by celebrity chef David Burke .
I ’ m drinking coffee and eating a pheasant sandwich — apropos for the exclusive club where members can periodically shoot the bird for sport .
“ I love bird hunting ,” Mihailides says . “ Whatever you shoot , you eat — it ’ s fulfilling .”
Mihailides , equity owner of the Preserve , doesn ’ t order anything for himself . And he ’ s only picking at the bacon — a signature dish by Burke . We discuss his life , family , business and long-term vision for the Preserve .
And he ’ s clearly wary of me . At one point , he loosely references that his staff debriefed him to let him know I ’ m an investigative reporter . He says he hopes the article about the Preserve will be positive .
At the time , it didn ’ t strike me as unusual — my title can make some people jumpy during interviews . But months after our lunch , I discover there are other issues percolating . A
former employee — Alison McDaniel — had been putting together the pieces to file a graphic twenty-nine-page federal lawsuit accusing Mihailides of sexually harassing her and other female workers at the Preserve . “ Mihailides subjected her to repeated sexual advances including attempts to kiss her on the mouth , requests for sexual favors , inappropriate touching , ogling with suggestive overtones and verbal and physical harassment of a sexual nature , which were unwelcome and offensive to McDaniel ,” wrote attorney Mark Gagliardi in the lawsuit , which was filed in July .
Mihailides declined to be interviewed again after McDaniel filed the lawsuit . Some staffers I ’ d been talking with stopped responding .
The Preserve attorney Nicole Benjamin has fired back at the allegations , accusing McDaniel — an actress and model hired as a resort spokesperson in 2019 — of stealing company property , computer crimes and interfering with company relationships .
“ It was not until Ms . McDaniel refused to return the Preserve ’ s property that Ms . Mc- Daniel made any allegation of harassment or discrimination ,” Benjamin said in July .
The company and Mihailides filed counterclaims against McDaniel , accusing her of trying to extort $ 50,000 for the return of stolen IT equipment , sabotage the company ’ s social media presence and “ infiltrate the Mihailides family by developing a close relationship with them .”
The defendants also alleged McDaniel “ embarked on a public campaign to harass , embarrass , threaten , intimidate , defame and slander Mihailides .”
The sexual harassment case has added a new layer of controversy to the Preserve , which for years has drawn a lot of outside attention for its secretive membership , unique amenities and location in one of the smallest communities of the country ’ s smallest state .
Membership fees are anywhere from $ 1,000
FROM LEFT : Paul Mihailides inside a horse barn at the Preserve ; a FAMARS custom-designed , handcrafted rifle ; a stone-built “ hobbit house ” at the Preserve is an attraction for social media influencers ; hunting at the Preserve .
60 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l SEPTEMBER 2023