As promised: Halsey Minor chooses bankruptcy for mansion's LLC
-
In 2007, at the height of the real estate bubble, Halsey Minor bought Carter's Grove for $15.3 million.file photos
As he promised to do, internet financier and halted hotel-builder Halsey Minor has placed the LLC he created for owning a historic Williamsburg-area mansion into bankruptcy, thus thwarting efforts to sell the foreclosed property at auction Tuesday.
The move was first revealed by the Virginia Gazette, a newspaper that has been covering the latest contretemps swirling around the embattled Minor. He once held a fortune estimated near $400 million, but he allegedly got behind on his mortgage payments on the 1755 Carter's Grove estate.
In what seems to have become a pattern, Minor used the planned February 15 foreclosure auction to lash out at the seller, accusing the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation of foisting a leaky edifice on him, of draping the property with easements that might prevent him from opening the place to the public, and just generally spewing attacks on the historical organization's management, marketing, motives, and even its corporate vision (or lack thereof).
The Foundation and others have pointed out that terms of the sale gave Minor and his minions copious opportunity to inspect both the property and the legal documents that conveyed it.
California court records show that Carters Grove LLC, in contrast to some of the larger deals involving Minor, has just 10 unsecured creditors listed with the court, with the largest one being Dominion Power, which is allegedly owed $18,000. Other unpaid creditors include the Newport News Waterworks at $1,400, Tiger Fuel at $6,338, and architectural paint analyst Natasha Loeblich whom Minor's filing appears to admit that he owes $5,700.
Minor has said that he stopped payment on his mortgage to express his displeasure with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. What transgresions these other creditors might have committed to leave them likewise unpaid has thus far, however, gone unsaid. On the morning of February 17, a reporter spoke with a representative of Minor, who offered to try to find out.
Already, Minor has been admonished by the California bankruptcy court for failing to file nine required documents– including a list of personal property and a statement of financial affairs. Should Minor fail by March 1 to submit the forms or to sufficiently explain why he needs more time, Judge Thomas E. Carlson can toss out the bankruptcy filing, thus giving a green light to the mortgage-holder to relaunch the auction proceedings.
This is not the first time Minor has placed one of his companies into voluntary bankruptcy proceedings. Last September, he filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition for Minor Family Hotels LLC, the company that was building the stalled Landmark hotel on the Charlottesville Downtown Mall. Minor tried to pool some of his pending court cases into Virginia bankruptcy court; but the effort failed, and last month he ended up losing control of the hotel project via summary judgment in an Atlanta-area courtroom.
–-last updated 11:47am, Thursday, February 17
–story corrected at 8:48am Friday, February 18 to provide correct name of the newspaper. It's the Virginia Gazette, not the Williamsburg Gazette.
15 comments
what an rich idiot, like many of them
He is in a world of his own. He has demons from his birth that he cannot shake.
It's a modern Greek tragedy that can't end in other than saddness and gnashing of teeth.
Wonder what Bank will end up owning this ? After buying Albemarle House for $15.26 million yesterday, Bank of America may not be the only bank with a mansion in Virginia.
Stupid, spoiled rich kid!
I went to school with this arse and he still is. Who else doesn't pay their bills and still holds the property, has electricity and gas? Why don't these companys do what they do to the little guy - stop providing power/electric etc.?
Minor:"I'm a spoiled brat and I want things my way." Obviosly his MOTHER didn't teach him cause and affect nor did she smack his arse when he needed it!
He lashed out at the waterworks saying he wasn't told he could get free water from the leaky roof when he bought it. He lashed out at Dominion power and tiger fuel saying an historic mansion shouldn't have electricity or gas. He lashed out at the paint analysist who took all her samples under the leaking roof....
The Hook is so idiotically smug. Pretentious, and without any cash or style.
His antics grow tiresome. Let him torment some other state.
Lindsay Lohan, Charlie Sheen, Paris Hilton, Halsey Minor-----has a certain ring to it doesn't it?
Want to meet the lawyer who represented mister minor for Sotheby's, Christies, Merrill Lynch, created huge pr messes and then ended up quitting at the last minute in all the cases. None other than:
http://www.tmz.com/2011/02/19/oksana-grigorieva-mel-gibson-eric-george-l...
He was the same guy who represented M Jackson's scummy wife in the money for custody swap. Hmm. Lee Danielson. Eric George. Failed Atlanta bank. I think mister minor might want to do a little research on who he works with. pretty amazing story.
Sounds like Minor didn't do his homework (again). I suspect that Minor wanted George, in part, because his father is the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court. In reading the article you refer to it appears that Eric George didn't do anything more than wanting his fee (something that Minor never paid). And if you aren't associated with Minor how do you know that there were PR messes (were there?). Frankly, Minor has a habit of blaming everyone from his ex-wife, to Santa Claus. Nothing new here.
Journalist get more readers when they report drama. The plain simple fact is that Halsey is trying to maintain America's history for future generations. It seems he has been hit absurdly hard by the economic crisis. None of these hardships were his fault, and he is doing his best to repay everyone. Do you really think he enjoys the scathing articles? Consider how you would feel if someone published an article every time you missed a payment. Of course he wants to pay what he rightfully owes. The people who immorally try to steal from him don't deserve the money, period. The people who condemn him as a "spoiled rich kid" fail to realize that he is actually creating jobs and trying to keep alive the history and culture that he admires. Halsey is a proven businessman who has created jobs, and I fully expect him to bounce back with a positive impact!
All I can say is, as one of the first 50 employees of CNET, Minor's dotcom company, is that it couldn't happen to a more deserving guy.
It appears that Charlie Sheen is the favorite to play Halsey Minor in the movie about the reverse of Social Network....instead of how a fortune was made it will be about how a fortune was lost...