Post by southsidesignmaker on Jun 10, 2010 11:11:13 GMT -5
Moser Enterprises filed for bankruptcy protection
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www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/business/2375314,Moser-Enterprises-bankruptcy_NA060910.article
June 9, 2010
By SUSAN FRICK CARLMAN scarlman@stmedianetwork.com
Moser Enterprises has grappled with a challenging economic climate before.
More than six decades ago, when three lumber suppliers were operating in Naperville, the enterprise then known as Moser Lumber took the enterprising step of scooping up farmland just outside the city limits and using some of its lumber inventory to put up 51 homes on it.
Construction in the post-World War II era was markedly different from the industry environment today, though. That truth was illustrated in the prominent developer's May 27 bankruptcy filing.
John Zediker, the company's president and CEO since 2004, remains hopeful that Moser Enterprises can overcome the real estate market's deep funk and emerge from Chapter 11 protection.
The tipping point, Zediker said, was the acquisition by FirstMerit Corp. of First Midwest Bank and Trust, which had extended Moser $20 million loan that became payable May 1. The company had repaid a portion of the debit, but most of it remained outstanding.
"We've been working closely with our bank, and when they were taken over, things just went on the chaotic side," said Zediker, who was appointed last year to represent District 5 on the DuPage County Board.
Much of the struggle the company has encountered in recent times comes from factors beyond its control.
"We've seen, over the last five years, the market for new home sales decline about 93 percent," Zediker said.
Many of those in the industry simply stopped building, at the urging of their own creditors. Others have cut down operations to a bare minimum and await better times, he said.
The decline of a powerful Naperville business entity was marked by others with sadness.
"It's a damned shame. It's a good company," said an executive with another local company in the industry, who preferred not to have his name published. "It's just the financial times is all it is."
The company in recent times had maintained the same integrity it always had, the executive said.
"The economic times we're in have just destroyed a good company," he said.
The Moser family and their companies have left a mark throughout the community. A $1 million gift from the family helped pay for the Edward Cancer Center, which today is anchored by the James L. Moser lobby. Jim Moser was an early supporter of the Riverwalk, chairing its commission for many years, and was instrumental in the establishment of Safety Town.
The Moser legacy isn't lost on Zediker, who is a trustee for the family trust. Moser Enterprises is among its holdings.
"For now, we'll continue to work with the bank and hopefully work out some sort of a deal," he said.
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www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/business/2375314,Moser-Enterprises-bankruptcy_NA060910.article
June 9, 2010
By SUSAN FRICK CARLMAN scarlman@stmedianetwork.com
Moser Enterprises has grappled with a challenging economic climate before.
More than six decades ago, when three lumber suppliers were operating in Naperville, the enterprise then known as Moser Lumber took the enterprising step of scooping up farmland just outside the city limits and using some of its lumber inventory to put up 51 homes on it.
Construction in the post-World War II era was markedly different from the industry environment today, though. That truth was illustrated in the prominent developer's May 27 bankruptcy filing.
John Zediker, the company's president and CEO since 2004, remains hopeful that Moser Enterprises can overcome the real estate market's deep funk and emerge from Chapter 11 protection.
The tipping point, Zediker said, was the acquisition by FirstMerit Corp. of First Midwest Bank and Trust, which had extended Moser $20 million loan that became payable May 1. The company had repaid a portion of the debit, but most of it remained outstanding.
"We've been working closely with our bank, and when they were taken over, things just went on the chaotic side," said Zediker, who was appointed last year to represent District 5 on the DuPage County Board.
Much of the struggle the company has encountered in recent times comes from factors beyond its control.
"We've seen, over the last five years, the market for new home sales decline about 93 percent," Zediker said.
Many of those in the industry simply stopped building, at the urging of their own creditors. Others have cut down operations to a bare minimum and await better times, he said.
The decline of a powerful Naperville business entity was marked by others with sadness.
"It's a damned shame. It's a good company," said an executive with another local company in the industry, who preferred not to have his name published. "It's just the financial times is all it is."
The company in recent times had maintained the same integrity it always had, the executive said.
"The economic times we're in have just destroyed a good company," he said.
The Moser family and their companies have left a mark throughout the community. A $1 million gift from the family helped pay for the Edward Cancer Center, which today is anchored by the James L. Moser lobby. Jim Moser was an early supporter of the Riverwalk, chairing its commission for many years, and was instrumental in the establishment of Safety Town.
The Moser legacy isn't lost on Zediker, who is a trustee for the family trust. Moser Enterprises is among its holdings.
"For now, we'll continue to work with the bank and hopefully work out some sort of a deal," he said.