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Bank sues developers for payment or property
By BRADY DENNIS, Times Staff Writer LAND O'LAKES -- Wachovia bank has filed a multimillion dollar lawsuit against the developers of a neighborhood in Quail Hollow, saying no payments have been made on loans since March. The bank on Wednesday sued the Fairways at Quail Hollow Ltd.; Aquilaco Inc.; and company president Cindy Meyer-Webb, 38. The lawsuit contends that the companies, under Meyer-Webb, have defaulted on loans worth more than $1-million as well as a $3-million revolving line of credit. The lawsuit asks that if the money isn't recovered, Wachovia be allowed to foreclose on the land and 13 unfinished houses in the neighborhood that haven't been worked on since December. Meyer-Webb, who has moved to South Florida, could not be reached for comment Thursday. But her mother, Juliette Pastirjak, who also was named as a defendant, said she just learned about the lawsuit from a reporter. "I'm shocked. I've not heard anything about this," Pastirjak said. "They have not notified me." When asked why 13 homes had remained untouched since December, Pastirjak said only that the last she heard, they were "supposed to be finished up." She said she had no number for her daughter in Miami. A lawyer for Wachovia declined to comment about the details of the case. "Because it's all related to this litigation, it's really inappropriate for us to talk about this matter," said St. Petersburg attorney L. Geoffrey Young. "A lot of people's interests are affected by this. It'll be (settled) in court." Some of the homes are less than a month from completion, while others barely have a foundation poured. In addition to the 13 unfinished houses, 35 lots along Gentle Ben Circle remain empty, with weeds growing in many of them. Neighbors have said that the incomplete construction and the remaining empty lots have become an eyesore in their otherwise pleasant neighborhood. And news of the lawsuit didn't soothe them much. "We'd like for the bank to bring in another contractor to complete the houses here and sell the empty lots, that's what we're looking for," said resident Carl Frey. "We want somebody to finish up and give us the peace of mind that we paid for." Nick Karseras, who owns one of the 13 unfinished homes, said he doesn't know if he and his wife, Sandra, will still be interested in living there when the litigation winds down. They're already looking at other lots -- and other developers. "It's probably going to go on a couple of years before anything happens, which is sad," Karseras said. "I can't believe there's people in this world who would take advantage of other people as (these developers) have. I would like to move out there. My wife is kind of fed up with the whole thing." According to court documents, Meyer-Webb and the other defendants have 20 days to provide a written response to the complaint.
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From today's Pasco Times Letters |
