Foreclosure of 'nightmare' Downtown KeyBank tower could be coming thanks to latest lawsuit
View a previous report in the video player above on OH Pizza and Brew's announcement of plans to relocate from the KeyBank Building.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- As multiple tenants abandon ship at a Downtown Columbus skyscraper due to "nightmare" conditions, the property's owner has been hit with a foreclosure.
In a lawsuit filed on April 19, AFF IV 88 E Broad identified itself as the lender that put down $11.8 million toward buying the 88 E. Broad St. skyscraper. That company is now coming after borrower and building owner Baruch Broad Street. AFF IV wants $9,320,807 in judgment, saying Baruch "breached its obligations under the loan documents by failing to make payments."
AFF IV attached its original loan agreement with Baruch from Jan. 21, 2022, that stipulated that Baruch would have to fully repay the loan exactly two years later. The lender argued in court documents that Baruch failed to do so, and also learned on April 8 that the skyscraper's main tenant, KeyBank, said it would stop paying rent if Baruch did not cover utility bills for the building.
Because Baruch Broad Street is a shell company, the lender sent a summons by certified mail to Zamir Equities CEO Asher Roshanzamir. Roshanzamir is listed as the agent for Baruch with the Ohio Secretary of State's office.
No business records existed in the Ohio Secretary of State's or the Delaware County Recorder's offices for AFF IV 88 E Broad. But Michelle Fowler, managing director at The Ardent Companies, revealed in court documents that her business owns and controls AFF IV.
Within the same day of filing the lawsuit, Ardent also filed an ex parte motion to put the building into receivership, which would strip Baruch of control of the building and give it to a third party to manage. An ex parte decision would allow the judge in the case to grant the action without requiring all of the parties named in the lawsuit to be present. Ardent's attorney Jonathan Hawkins argued this was necessary, alluding to utility and security issues highlighted by departing tenants like OH Pizza and Brew and the Ohio Auditor's Office.
"The poor and unsafe management of lender's collateral by its borrower … will, absent this court's intervention, place lender's interests at imminent risk for which no legal remedy would be adequate," Hawkins wrote.
The judge had not issued a decision on the ex parte motion as of Friday morning. If granted, Prodigy Properties would take over the 88 E. Broad St. tower as the receiver.
AFF and Ardent, by proxy, are the latest in a line of companies wanting money from Baruch and Zamir Equities. Harvard Maintenance sued Baruch for $170,750.41, citing a failure to pay for bathroom supplies and janitorial services it provided at the KeyBank tower. Harvard received summary judgment in the case, because despite being served a summons, Baruch did not appear in court or give a response in the case.
Speer Mechanical sued Baruch on April 19, also citing a lack of payment for work performed on the tower since August 2022. The contractor put a lien of $486,897.87 on the skyscraper in March, but in the lawsuit asked for foreclosure on his lien as well as interest accrued leading up to any decision from the court.
AFF and Ardent were well aware of the other lawsuits, as they named Harvard and Speer as defendants that "may claim an interest in the property" in their foreclosure case. PSP Operations was also listed as a defendant, but did not have a lawsuit filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court as of Friday.
While acknowledging the other companies, AFF and Ardent also argued in court documents that as the mortgage lender, they should get "first priority" on any possible payout with their foreclosure.
As of Friday, Baruch and the other defendants had no attorney on file for the foreclosure proceedings. View the initial complaint in the case, which includes the companies' original loan agreement, below.