[QUOTE=Glimmerglass;5433611]
By the way the Court House action of Carter Grove was canceled for now. As expected Minor filed for bankruptcy with the holding company and it halted the delinquency auction.[/QUOTE]
That was in Feb 2011 and here we are in May 2012 and the fallout to Carter Hall, under the ownership of Halsey Minor, appears to be dramatic. Hampton Roads 5/23/12: “Court hears of problems at Carter’s Grove mansion”
State historic preservation inspectors have become so concerned about the property that they worry the mansion might explode due to a hazardous condition in the basement.
A bankruptcy judge heard some of the details Thursday and may consider sanctions against the property’s owner, onetime multimillionaire Halsey Minor.
“I think the court was lied to,” U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Stephen St. John said.
Built in the mid-1700s, the Carter’s Grove mansion sits on more than 400 acres overlooking the James River about eight miles south of Colonial Williamsburg. The building is considered a famous example of colonial Virginia plantation architecture.
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation operated the property in James City County since the late 1960s, when it received it as a gift. Five years ago, as revenues continued to decline, the foundation sold the property to Minor, the founder of the tech website CNET who became a dot-com and venture capitalist tycoon.
Minor, a Charlottesville native, put $5 million down and borrowed $10.3 million from the foundation for the property. He stopped making payments and now owes the foundation about $4 million plus interest. He also mortgaged the property to buy a $5 million private jet and $3.4 million in artwork.
When he filed a bankruptcy petition on behalf of his Carter’s Grove LLC, he claimed more than $12 million in debts. (Minor has a trail of debt across the country, including a $10 million tax bill in California.)
Throughout 10 months of bankruptcy proceedings, Minor and his lawyers filed monthly expense reports showing that bills were being paid and repairs done.
But now, the bankruptcy judge is wondering whether those reports were accurate.
Minor, as people may recall, openly flirted with buying several race tracks including in particular Hialeah then after legal fights he tire kicked a few tracks held by Magna Entertainment Corp (MEC). All the while he was the State of California’s single largest tax delinquent.
In addition to Carter’s Grove his Fox Ridge property is on the market and contents being auctioned off - quietly. Of course the trail of litigation and unpaid debts continue to string along.
