Central City South Associates v. Spirit Holding Co. (In re Spirit Holding Co.)

166 B.R. 371, 1994 Bankr. LEXIS 529
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Missouri
DecidedJanuary 10, 1994
DocketBankruptcy No. 93-42135-293; Adv. No. 93-4473
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 166 B.R. 371 (Central City South Associates v. Spirit Holding Co. (In re Spirit Holding Co.)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Central City South Associates v. Spirit Holding Co. (In re Spirit Holding Co.), 166 B.R. 371, 1994 Bankr. LEXIS 529 (E.D. Mo. 1994).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

DAVID P. McDONALD, Bankruptcy Judge.

JURISDICTION

This Court has jurisdiction over the parties and subject matter of this proceeding pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1334, 151, and 157 and Local Rule 29 of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. This is a “core proceeding” pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(A) and (0), which the Court may hear and determine. Venue is proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1409(a).

PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

1. Spirit and Central are Debtors and Debtors-In-Possession herein, having filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11, Title 11, United States Code (“Bankruptcy Code”) on March 23, 1993 and March 29, 1993, respectively.

2. Central City South Associates (“Central City”) is a Missouri general partnership, comprised of fifteen individuals. George Kis-ter is a general partner and manages the property.

3. Spirit is the lessee and Central City is the lessor under a certain lease of non-residential real property dated January 28, 1971 (“Original Lease”), as amended on January 7, 1980 and January 23, 1993, and as further amended by the Second Amendment To Lease dated July 26, 1991 (“Second Amendment”) (collectively, the “Lease”). Pursuant to the Lease, Spirit leases space in Central City South Shopping Center located at 4445 Lemay Ferry Road, St. Louis, Missouri (“Shopping Center”). Central, in turn, subleases the premises from Spirit.

4. Pursuant to a hearing held on July 21, 1993, this Court entered an order extending the Debtors’ time to assume or reject leases for non-residential real property until November 30, 1993, subject to the right of each landlord to seek a shortening of such time for cause shown.

5. On July 21, 1993, Central City filed its Amended Objection To Debtors’ Motion For A Second Extension Of Time To Assume Or Reject Unexpired Leases (“Objection”), and, on the same day, this Court deemed Central City’s objection to be a motion to compel assumption or rejection of the Lease.

6. On or about September 2, 1993, this Court granted Debtors’ motion to apply all of the rules in Part VII of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure.

7. On September 3, 1993, Debtors filed their Answer, Affirmative Defenses and Counterclaims of Spirit Holding Company, Inc. and Central Hardware Company, Inc. to [373]*373Central City South Associates’ Motion To Compel Assumption Or Rejection Of Lease (“Answer”).

8. A hearing was held on September 21, 1993 on the Landlord’s Objection and Debtors’ affirmative defenses and counterclaims. The Court orally entered an Order requiring the Debtors to assume or reject the Central City Lease on or before October 26, 1993, and further, orally Ordered on the record that:

(i) Debtors did not cause Landlord to be denied refinancing; and
(ii) Debtors reasonably withheld consent to Landlord’s proposed development of two outlots together, but unreasonably withheld consent to the proposed development of one of the outlets alone.

The remaining issues raised at the September 21 hearing, concerning the alleged non-monetary defaults asserted in the Landlord’s Objection and the Debtors’ counterclaims and affirmative defenses were taken under advisement.

9. Debtors neither assumed nor rejected the Lease unconditionally as of October 26, 1993. However, on October 26 the Debtors filed their Motion To Assume Conditionally The Unexpired Central City Lease. The Motion provided in part:

“By this Motion, Spirit elects, and seeks approval of the following election, to assume the Lease, conditioned upon: (i) a finding by the Court that the Debtors are not in default of the Lease and that Landlord has not suffered any actual pecuniary losses which must be cured, or that any defaults or pecuniary losses are so minor that Spirit, in its sole discretion, decides to assume the lease anyway; (ii) the Landlord waiving any objections under § 365 to the assignment of the lease to one of the purchasers of Central; (iii) Landlord’s compliance by a date certain with its own obligation under the terms of the Lease and immediate cure of its own defaults; and (iv) Landlord’s expansion of the shopping center being in full compliance with all applicable local ordinances. Such conditional assumption is legally appropriate when the conditions relate to lessor’s compliance with the terms of the Lease. No election to assume or reject the sublease between Spirit and Central is made at this time.”

The Creditors’ Committee filed a statement in support of the Debtors’ Conditional assumption of the unexpired lease; while Central City filed its objection. A hearing was held on November 3, 1993 to consider said Motion. During the course of the hearing the Debtors’ counsel explained that because the Court had not ruled on the remaining issues raised at the September 21 hearing, it was difficult for the Debtors to make an unconditional election. The Debtors preferred to assume conditionally, but in the alternative if the conditional assumption was unacceptable to the Court, they elected to assume the Lease without conditions. Debtors’ counsel stated, “let me make it clear, we are assuming [the Lease].” To clarify their intent, the Debtors orally amended their Motion by removing the conditional aspect of its assumption. On November 3, after the conclusion of the hearing, the Debtors filed their Motion Amending Debtors’ Motion To Assume Conditionally The Unexpired Central City Lease, which provided in part:

“1. As an alternative to assuming the Central City Lease (‘Lease’) upon the conditions set forth in the Motion, Debtor hereby assumes that Lease subject only to such conditions as the Court may impose. If the Court determines not to impose any conditions, then Debtor hereby assumes the Lease without any of the conditions set forth in the Motion.”

On November 4, 1993, Central City renewed its objection to the Debtors’ Amended Motion. Thereafter, the Bank Group filed its response indicating it supported the Debtors’ conditional assumption, but opposed the amended unconditional assumption of the unexpired lease.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Upon consideration of the testimony, exhibits, arguments of counsel and briefs, the Court makes the following findings of facts:

1. The leased premise is a Central Hardware Store (the “Store”) which includes in[374]*374door and outdoor sales areas, offices and storage areas.

CENTRAL CITY’S OBJECTIONS

2. In Paragraph 3 of its Objection, Central City alleges that Debtors have encroached upon common areas of the Shopping Center by using and occupying common area space for the sale and display of merchandise.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

In Re Ruggeri Elec. Contracting, Inc.
214 B.R. 481 (E.D. Michigan, 1997)
United States v. Borock
214 B.R. 481 (E.D. Michigan, 1997)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
166 B.R. 371, 1994 Bankr. LEXIS 529, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/central-city-south-associates-v-spirit-holding-co-in-re-spirit-holding-moed-1994.