RSSLawsuits over nearly $6M in debt lead to Chapter 11 for Morrier Ranch
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YAKIMA, Wash. — Joe Morrier's agricultural operation -- Morrier Ranch -- has been sued by two banks for nearly $6 million in unpaid debt, forcing the company into a reorganization bankruptcy.
Morrier Ranch Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Jan. 17.
The corporation's $19.7 million in assets include ownership of several properties in East Valley, including hop fields in Moxee and residential property in Terrace Heights, according to bankruptcy documents filed Wednesday.
But over the past two years, revenues have declined, according to financial statements filed for the bankruptcy. In 2011, the corporation earned $767,790 in revenue from the sales of hops, apples and storage, a nearly 24 percent decline from 2009.
In all, the corporation has debt topping $6 million, according to bankruptcy filings. The majority of the debt -- about $4.8 million -- is owed to KeyBank, which is seeking more than $3.7 million for two loans taken out against Morrier Ranch property, and Banner Bank, which is seeking nearly $1.1 million for an agricultural loan.
Those amounts, however, are lower than what KeyBank and Banner Bank sought when it sued Morrier Ranch in August and September, respectively, for nonpayment of the loans.
Morrier Ranch denied allegations by both banks, but a judge ultimately ruled in favor of KeyBank last month. A judgment has not yet been reached in the Banner Bank case.
Neither Morrier nor James Hurley, the Yakima attorney representing Morrier Ranch, returned a call Wednesday afternoon seeking comment.
Morrier Ranch is just one of several entities that Morrier owns for various business ventures. Other such entities include Bon Lofts LLC for The Lofts, the downtown Yakima condominium complex; Morrier Hotel LLC for the Hilton Garden Inn and The Tower LLC for The Tower building, which has the federal bankruptcy court as one of its tenants.
It is unclear whether the bankruptcy will affect those ventures, but Morrier has seen struggles elsewhere. In October, Morrier and Seattle developer Gary Bodenstab went through an auction for The Lofts when more than half of the development's 27 units were still vacant.
The auction generated winning bids for 10 units, but as of Wednesday, only half of the units have been sold. Developers stated earlier that those sales fell well below the cost of building them.
* Mai Hoang can be reached at 509-577-7685 or maihoang@yakimaherald.com.
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