100 N. Main foreclosure sale delayed

Repeated postponements likely to end with auction of tallest building set for April 26

A foreclosure sale on Memphis’ tallest building was delayed Wednesday, likely for the last time, signaling lenders are weary of dealing with 100 North Main’s owner.

Attorney William P. Moss III of Harris Shelton said the sale, postponed repeatedly since last fall, would likely happen at noon April 26 barring an unforeseen event.

Moss, substitute trustee in the foreclosure proceeding, announced the delay on the steps of the Judge D’Army Bailey Courthouse, where he was scheduled to auction the building’s outstanding debt.

“We’re just going to give some other potential investors time to step up,” Moss said. “I was told by the bank it’s time to sell it, whether they take it back or someone else steps up and buys it.”

The delay came three weeks after a fire broke out in upper stories of the 38story tower, which has been the focus of an Environmental Court case for fire safety and code violations since August 2015. The building at Main and Adams has been substantially vacant for three years.

The primary lender served notice last fall that the owner, IMH Memphis LLC, was in default on a $2.8 million mortgage. The sale was postponed multiple times as the owner continued discussions with the lender.

Moss said the lender had been lenient with the building owner. The bank would

set a minimum bid for the sale, but Moss said he wasn’t aware of that minimum.

As to the possibility of another delay, Moss said, “There’s a chance, but the bank has said, ‘This is it.’”

Environmental Court also has granted delays to give IMH Memphis time to bring the 38-story office tower into compliance with fire codes. It’s unclear who principals of IMH Memphis are, but their point of contact has been Eli Freiden, a Memphis-born, Florida-based businessman with no track record of major redevelopment projects in the city.

A prominent address Downtown for companies after its 1965 completion, 100 North Main was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015 as an example of mid-century modern architecture.

IMH Memphis is the second group that has proposed to convert the building to apartments and a hotel. The owner’s lawyer told Environmental Court last summer that the holdup was getting a commitment to $60 million to $70 million in financing for the project.