One of the most influential owners in the Village, Myles Ogea, is fighting to retain his buildings that were in jeopardy last year after his company, Mylo Inc., lost a foreclosure judgment to the Bank of the West for more than $500,000.
After the foreclosures took place in December, Mylo Inc., which holds ownership of multiple properties in the Village including The MT Cup and Jimmy John's, sought Chapter 11 protection in May 2010.
Since filing bankruptcy, which involved a reorganization of Mylo Inc., Ogea has filled a few of the buildings in the Village with new businesses. Ogea's lawyer, Ed Hopper, said it shows that Ogea's presence in the area can have a positive impact on the Village.
"His intent is to retain the properties and improve them," Hopper said. "There are a couple of bars and restaurants that have opened since the bankruptcy, and he's rented a couple of apartments to students."
Ogea said he's committed to turning things around for him in the Village and using his properties to make the area a better place.
"I could have filed a Chapter 7 or 13 bankruptcy and been done with it, but that's not right. By filling a Chapter 11, I'm saying, ‘Yes I have debts and I want to make things right,'" Ogea said. "It's not about pride. It's about doing the right thing, and that's taking care of the debt."
In Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the company is freed from its creditors and given time to reorganize its finances. The reorganization plan must be accepted by the majority of the creditors.
Although the Village's brighter days seem to be behind it, promising signs are popping up here and there.
Newcomers to the Village this year include the bar Be Here Now on Dill Street and a new restaurant, Fusion Japanese, which is located in one of Ogea's properties.
Fusion Japanese manager Jimmy Kudo said his restaurant is hoping to open a Japanese- and Korean-style bar in the back of the building in November.
A sign reading "Coming Soon" has appeared in the storefront that used to be Crawdaddy's.
Ogea said that a new hair salon will be opening this year in another one of his buildings and that he hopes to see positive things in the Village continue to happen.
"I would love to see people invest in the Village," he said. "I would certainly like to see more businesses do well in the Village and not just the ones I have stake in."
Ogea said there is a new consignment retail shop, similar to Plato's Closet, going in behind the University Square Building.
Scott Wise, president and CEO of Scotty's Brewhouse, said in his 14 years in the Village, he has never seen things get as bad as they have been in the past year.
"At this point, I'd say the Village has nowhere to go but up," Wise said.
Wise said he thinks that Muncie's focus on its downtown area and the formation of the Muncie Downtown Development Partnership has helped move attention away from making the Village all that it can be.
He isn't the only one who recognizes that the Village seems to be forgotten by Muncie. City Council member Mark Conatser, who represents a district that includes a large portion of the Village, said he expects interest in turning the area into a Tax Increment Financing district to start growing.
If turned into a TIF district, Conaster said, this would mean lower property taxes for businesses in the Village and when taxes were paid, a portion of those would be put into an account that would help fund development projects in the area such has road repairs or the replacement of streetlights.
"If we could get some retail down there, maybe a shopping area, I think it could spark some interest," Conatser said. "Having a student organization to communicate what they want down there for their own needs would also be beneficial."
Moving forward with Ogea's bankruptcy, Hopper said he and Ogea will file a plan in November with a strategy to improve his properties.
This plan will be evaluated by a creditor and bankruptcy judge, who will ultimately decide what will happen to the large portion of the Village that Ogea controls. Unless the court rules otherwise, Ogea will remain in control of his businesses and assets.
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