Foreclosure Auction for Point Ruston Properties in Tacoma, Washington

A foreclosure auction has been scheduled for two properties in Point Ruston, a landmark and tourist spot in the city of Tacoma.

These include a garage and a public market, which will be auctioned after a Pierce County Superior Court judge issued a $91 million judgment against the developer of the 97-acre waterfront project.

In recent days, Judge Shelly Speir-Moss decided that two entities linked to developer Loren Cohen (Tacoma-based Point Ruston LLC and Point Ruston Phase II LLC) must repay a $66 million loan issued in 2013. Accumulated interest, penalties, and legal fees have increased the total by $25 million, so the auction aims to cover part of the $91 million judgment.

American United EB-5 Regional Center III LLC (AURC), which acted as the lender, is made up of 132 foreign investors who each invested $500,000 in 2013 through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services EB-5 program.

The loan covered the Waterfront Market and the complex’s parking garage, which was also the site for the construction of four buildings, but given the situation, the city of Tacoma has voided the building permit requests for these structures, which were to include 222 residential units, 69,000 square feet of commercial space, 3.3 acres of open space, and about 16,690 square feet of gardens and green spaces.

According to AURC’s attorney, Russell Knight, the total value of the properties is approximately $45 million, and the sale is expected to take place at the Pierce County Courthouse. Mr. Knight said, “The largest part of the judgment will be collected by foreclosing on the Waterfront Market in Ruston and the Point Ruston Garage, and the buildings will remain and serve Point Ruston, but will no longer be under the control of Loren Cohen, who is the sole owner of Point Ruston, LLC.”

This would be the second foreclosure of the Waterfront Market building. According to court documents, the family-owned Serpanok Construction acquired the building and about 300,000 square feet of the adjacent garage for $3.4 million in 2021. Serpanok then transferred the building’s title to AURC on March 1 through a deed in lieu of foreclosure.

This is the second judgment in the case since September 2021, when an arbitrator ordered Point Ruston LLC and seven related entities to pay AURC $11.5 million in interest. The judge’s decision raises the total value of judgments obtained by AURC to more than $100 million.

Available Foreclosures:

Tacoma: 2 homes available.

By Elías DaSilva | 20 de Noviembre de 2024.