Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Auction Next Stop in Developer Saga
Source: The Gazette
By Rich LadenTwenty-one residential and commercial properties in five states owned by bankrupt Colorado Springs developer Jannie Richardson will be auctioned in March as part of a court-ordered sale of her real estate holdings.
The sale is the latest fall from grace for Richardson, whose partially built, 153-acre mixed-use Colorado Crossing development on the far north side has become one of the city's biggest real estate flops in recent memory.
Though the upcoming auction won't include Colorado Crossing, the project's collapse set in motion the 2010 bankruptcy filings of Richardson and her SRKO Family Limited Partnership, which was Colorado Crossing's developer. The SRKO bankruptcy left dozens of contractors and subcontractors seeking to recover millions for work they did on Colorado Crossing.
An order last year by a federal bankruptcy judge in Denver authorized C. Randel Lewis, of Denver-based Western Receiver, Trustee & Consulting Services Ltd., to move forward with a sale of "surplus" properties owned by Richardson — those outside of Colorado Crossing.
Lewis, whom the court appointed as trustee to oversee Richardson's personal bankruptcy and to manage key decisions related to Colorado Crossing, has retained Chicago-based NRC Realty & Capital Advisors LLC to auction the 21 properties. NRC specializes in selling properties through bankruptcies and receiverships.
Buyers must submit sealed bids by March 12. Among the properties to be auctioned:
- The 70,200-square-foot, four-building Montebello Plaza office complex off Academy Boulevard on the Springs' north side
- 32.5 acres of undeveloped land in the scenic Oak Valley Ranch subdivision on the far northwest side.
- Richardson's 3,655-square-foot, four-bedroom, four-bathroom home in Manitou Springs.
Other properties include about 75 acres of undeveloped land in Castle Rock, two Denver condominiums, a 7,200-square-foot office building in Arizona, condos in California and Florida and vacant land in Texas.
Richardson couldn't be reached for comment.
In an interview, Lewis said the auction's goal is to generate cash to pay costs related to the Richardson and SRKO bankruptcies. He didn't know what the properties will fetch.
"It (sale proceeds) just really will come into both the Richardson and SRKO estates and help defray administrative expenses," Lewis said.
The auction proceeds, however, aren't intended to pay contractors and subcontractors who worked on Colorado Crossing no
To see a list of convenience stores for sale and gas stations for sale, click here.