Developer Wants to Sell 260 Acres to Bank

LAND O’ LAKES, FL-If developer Douglas Weiland has his way, the 260-acre, mixed-use Ashley Glen would be bought by Mercantile Bank, the institution that tried to foreclose on the property earlier this year. The Tampa Tribune reports that Weiland made the suggestion in his Chapter 11 reorganization plan.

The Tampa Tribune article says that Mercantile Bank initiated foreclosre proceedings against Ashley Glen, at State Road 54 and Suncoast Parkway, earlier this year when the developer missed two mortgage payments. According to the article, two other Weiland projects in the Tampa area, Summit View and Riverwood Estates, are linked to the same $21.5 million mortgage, and are also in Chapter 11.

The site was to have held 1.8 million square feet of office space and 600 apartments. The Tampa Tribune article says Weiland’s court papers contend that Ashley Glen is worth more than $37 million, based on appraisals done during spring 2009. With Ashley Glen’s assets transferred or sold to the bank, the papers noted, the debt on all three projects would be satisfied, permitting Weiland to maintain control of Summit View and Riverwood Estates.

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