Sager's 1st St Lofts in Foreclosure

[swake]

http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=32&articleid=20110730_32_E1_Longde39684

Not a shock but the city have any protection here with it's investment?

[Teatownclown]

Today's word is "forbearance" here at TNF....and it will be next weeks word of the year for the world.

[Teatownclown]

Back on topic, please, clown.

Can someone post the whole TW article?  I'm too chintzy to subscribe.

For some reason (right) TW does not have the story on their main page....why's that?

Bank seeks to foreclose on former Jacob Hotel
The property is being redeveloped into loft apartments.
By ROBERT EVATT World Staff Writer
Published: 7/30/2011  2:27 AM
Last Modified: 7/30/2011  5:04 AM

Long-delayed efforts to redevelop the former Jacob Hotel into loft apartments have hit another snag, with American Home Mortgage Co. filing suit to foreclose on the property.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Tulsa County District Court, claims Blue Dome Properties LLC has defaulted on a loan of $850,000 for redevelopment of the building into 310 Lofts and now owes $1.15 million because of interest.

First Street Lofts LLC, which secured the loan with a mortgage on the property at 310 E. First St., and the Tulsa Development Authority, which claims some interest in the property due to the contribution of $1.3 million in Vision 2025 funds, were also named as defendants in the lawsuit, which seeks to have their interest in the property deemed inferior to American Home Mortgage.

Michael Sager, developer of the estimated $3 million conversion, said he's hopeful things can get worked out.

"We're trying to renegotiate our mortgage with them," he said. "We're striving to comply with their needs, and they've been very patient."

Sam T. Allen, an attorney representing American Home Mortgage, said the bank's issue is straightforward.

"The note hasn't been paid in the time required," he said.

Work on converting the five-story, 95-year-old building was marked with a jackhammer ceremony in March 2007. Sager said the conversion is 60 percent complete and that construction has been stalled by the poor economy.

"It's been because of the same thing that's affected the rest of the country," he said. "It's been a tough road."

Sager said First Street Lofts has been redesigned in the past four months, with its original 18 loft apartments being divided into 21 units.

Also, he's hoping to incorporate 3,500 square feet of office space on the second floor. The 7,000 square feet on the first floor, former home to nightclubs and a restaurant, has been preleased to a new restaurant and an upscale liquor store.

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=32&articleid=20110730_32_E1_Longde39684


Lots of that hopey stuff.....

[DTowner]

Sager blaming the stalled status of this project on the economy is weak given when it was started and the number of downtown projects to come on line since work stopped on the 310 Lofts.  The only surprise is that it's taken this long for legal action to get filed.

[Kenosha]

I would say this.  Just as I warn against counting chickens before they are hatched (119 Downtown, Forrmation, etc.) let's not write 1st Street lofts off quite yet.   Despite the all of the vitriol sprayed towards Sager on here, he has actually done quite a few things for downtown, and I am sure no one wants 1st Street to happen more than he does.  While some of this is certainly his own doing, I know he is actively trying to right the ship, and I think he will do it.  Let's not wish him bad luck.  That would be bad for Tulsa, and bad for downtown.

And blaming the stalled economy is perfectly all right, if you ask me.  The rules changed.  The world is still adjusting to that.

[Teatownclown]

Sorry, but dreck on dreck is dreck.....If you think he's adding to the area you need to take a closer look. I believe the majority of investment comes from others down there....and to not abide by the terms and conditions of a government hand out is criminal.

Is a home town hero like

Harold Hill?

[Kenosha]

Criminal?  I think that is overstating it significantly.  Second, he hasn't defaulted on the city loan yet.  If that happens, let's have that conversation.  Until then, god forbid, why not hope he is able to honor the agreement? And I disagree about another point.  Sager has done a lot for the Blue Dome, facilitating a number of successful ventures, and I think you could get confirmation from a number of people on that.  Certainly, those who have invested in their business deserve credit for what they have done, but I know Sager has often been lenient on terms in order to make stuff happen.   That being said, why would you wish him failure?  Do you honestly think that someone is going to take over the project and complete it?  I don't.  I think he is the only one who is going to do it.  So, take him out of the picture, and what are you stuck with?  Exactly what you have right now. A half finished building. 

[rdj]

Eliot has attempted to buy the project many times.   Over/Under on how many months until he does?

[Conan71]

I'm curious how much the "developer" has been paid out of mortgaged funds as well as the V-2025 funds.

Granted, Sager has done his fair share of redevelopment work in the area and I don't think anyone doubts his dedication to the Blue Dome district, but he's seriously grasping at straws blaming this on the economy.  Tulsa has been relatively unscathed compared to the rest of the nation.  I wouldn't think he would have trouble attracting 18 to 21 urbanites to this property if he would just finish the damn thing.

[we vs us]

The 1st St. Lofts really tarnish his reputation, IMO.  The project is a physical reminder of failure, and the drawn out nature of it -- especially as business has been improving so dramatically around it compounds the sense that he's fumbled the project. 

That's certainly not to say that he hasn't encouraged development in other ways/venues, but you wonder why he just hasn't made a deal, finished the thing and moved on. 

[Conan71]

The 1st St. Lofts really tarnish his reputation, IMO.  The project is a physical reminder of failure, and the drawn out nature of it -- especially as business has been improving so dramatically around it compounds the sense that he's fumbled the project. 

That's certainly not to say that he hasn't encouraged development in other ways/venues, but you wonder why he just hasn't made a deal, finished the thing and moved on. 

Typical Sager.  His finances have always been binary.

[rdj]

Typical Sager.  His mother's finances have always been binary.

Fixed it for you.   

[Conan71]

Fixed it for you.   

LOL, forgot the purse strings

[AquaMan]

Nobody does this stuff alone. Whether it was his mother, uncle, Kaiser Foundation, BOK or whatever, that is not a fair criticism. I wish I had rich relations to bankroll my ideas!

Anyway, the building needs finished and I hope he finds some way of doing so. But he should take his name off the limestone on the facade and replace it with something more representative of the building. The original hotel name would be good.

[carltonplace]

I think everyone agrees that it needs to be finished and I hope he finds a way to do that.
He should not have any problem renting these units as long as they are priced to attract younger downtowners. We need these units, we need the v2025 loan paid back so it can be re-allocated to another housing project in downtown...downtown and the BD will benefit from these lofts.

Its hard to buy into Sager's assertion that the economy is to blame when we all know that he went back to V2025 for a second disbursement, we know the amount of the salary that he paid to himself at 1st St Lofts and we know that he recently bought another building on Elgin that will soon (we think) be a restaurant.