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Unicorp sued for breach of contract Broker: Developer didn't pay brokerage fees for
Baldwin Park Village Center ORLANDO -- Trammell Crow Realty Services Inc. and Unicorp National Developments Inc. are mired in a dispute involving fees for leasing services at Baldwin Park Village Center. According to the complaint filed in Orange County Circuit Civil Court, Unicorp and Trammell Crow signed a one-year exclusive leasing and brokerage agreement in January 2002. Under the agreement, Trammell Crow was named the exclusive leasing agent for Unicorp's Baldwin Park Village Center. Trammell Crow says its services led to several commercial leases entered into by third parties as tenants in the $100 million, 171,796-square-foot retail/ dining section of the Baldwin Park mixed-use project. For those services, the contract says it was entitled to receive real estate commissions paid by the owner of $4 per square foot for any leases executed with a non-anchor tenant (less than 30,000 square feet) and a $2 per square foot commission for any lease executed with an anchor tenant of more than 30,000 square feet. The contract also says it was to receive a $25,000 bonus upon completion of the first pre-leasing requirement date on June 15, 2002, and another $25,000 bonus upon completion of the second pre-lease requirement date of June 17, 2002. In the suit, Trammell Crow contends it performed its contracted leasing duties. But despite repeated requests, the firm says, Unicorp has refused to pay many of the real estate commissions. The broker is asking for a judgment in its favor and against Unicorp for damages, costs, attorneys' fees, pre-judgment interest and other relief totaling more than $15,000 in damages. Trammell Crow is not seeking a jury trial. Unicorp, however, denies the allegations and says the lawsuit is the result of misunderstandings that the two companies now are working to resolve regarding "the matter of some invoices and a difference of opinion as to what sums are currently due and owing," says Unicorp co-principal Lee J. Maher. "We fully anticipate that it will be amicably resolved," says Unicorp attorney Michael L. Moore. The lawsuit comes just two months after Orlando Business Journal reported Orlando-based Unicorp was more than a year behind schedule and millions of dollars over budget on Baldwin Park Village Center. In earlier interviews, Unicorp officials blamed the town center's delays on city permitting, damage from the hurricanes late last summer and changes in construction planning. Unicorp now has 86 percent of Baldwin Park Village Center leased, including 41 retail shops and restaurants. Of those, 15 stores and restaurants are open. And by the end of May, Unicorp expects to have seven more stores and restaurants open, for a total of 22. © 2005 American City Business Journals Inc. April 22, 2005. |
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