By KEN de la BASTIDE
Tribune enterprise editor
June 18, 2009 09:45 pm
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TIPTON — Ownership of the partially completed Getrag Transmission plant in Tipton County has been moved to a trust by a Michigan bankruptcy court.
The proposed $530 million plant at the intersection of Ind. 28 and U.S. 31 has sat idle since the Chrysler Corp. terminated an agreement with Getrag Transmission LLC to manufacture wet dual clutch transmissions.
Chrysler filed a lawsuit against Getrag alleging the company didn’t secure the necessary financing to complete the plant last September and Getrag Transmission LLC filed for bankruptcy protection in November.
The order approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Michigan moves the asset to an estate trust, which could help expedite the sale of the facility.
The court appointed Franklin Advisors LLC as the agent for the liquidation of the building and property and Walbridge Aldinger Company as the maintenance agent. Walbridge was the general contractor on the Tipton project.
The purpose of forming the trust is to sell or liquidate the plant and distribute the proceeds to lien holders, including a number of sub-contractors that are owed $44 million.
The court also appointed a beneficiaries committee consisting of the largest lien holders against Getrag Transmission LLC. The committee will oversee the distribution of the assets of the trust to the lien holders.
Two years ago to the day, Gov. Mitch Daniels stood on the steps of the Tipton County Courthouse and announced plans to construct the $530 million building that would have employed up to 1,200 people.
Thursday the utilities were transferred from the name of Getrag to Walbridge Construction.
The move was seen as a good sign by Mitch Roob, CEO of the Indiana Economic Development Corp.
“Moving the Getrag facility out of bankruptcy court and into a trust is an encouraging sign that the ball is moving downfield and getting closer to the point of repaying the local contractors involved in the buildings construction,” Roob said. “Expediting the process by which the facility can be marketed and sold to new ownership is the best case scenario for all involved.”
The court order specifies that Franklin Advisors, without any further approval, can accept any offer that realizes net proceeds, in an amount at least equal to the $42,895,022.81 owed to Walbridge Construction for work done at the site, plus $922,92 owed to Harley Ellis Devereaux Corp., which performed the architectural work on the plant.
The order states that if the building is not sold or a sale pending by Sept. 15, 2010, then Franklin Advisors will put the property up for auction.
Tipton County Commissioner Jane Harper said county officials were aware that this course of action was pending.
“This means the property can be actively marketed and we hope a tenant is found in the near future,” she said. “This is good news for Tipton because we will have a customer for the utilities at the site.”
Ken de la Bastide is the Kokomo Tribune enterprise editor. He can be reached at (765) 454-8580 or via e-mail at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com
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