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A deal has fallen through to sell the dilapidated barge that sits across the Tennessee River from Ross' Landing. The barge could remain in place, where it can be seen from Chattanooga's 21st Century Waterfront, until it is sold.
A former restaurant barge owned by Alan Casey has been empty for years docked along the Tennessee River in downtown Chattanooga.A deal has collapsed to remove a failed restaurant barge from downtown Chattanooga’s riverfront, leading to potential further delays in ridding what city officials call a waterfront eyesore.
A possible buyer of the dilapidated barge, RCW Inc., has failed to move forward with a plan to dismantle and remove the vessel, and an attorney is seeking to withdraw the deal in U.S. Bankruptcy Court so another option can be pursued.
“He apparently doesn’t want to proceed with the salvage of it,” said Gary Patrick, a lawyer for a group of business people who have sued Chattanooga businessman Allen Casey. It was Casey who brought the barge to the city in 2009, but he failed to move ahead with his plan to build an eatery and bar and filed for bankruptcy earlier this year.
Patrick said Casey attorney David Fulton has identified another party who may be interested in shifting the barge from its location across the Tennessee River from Ross’s Landing.
“He’s pursuing that right now,” Patrick said. “Hopefully we’ll know something in a few days. Otherwise, we’ll see who else is out there to do this.”
Patrick also said that a vacant parcel of land to which the barge is moored is getting interest from potential buyers.
“There may be an offer made shortly on the property,” he said.
Kim White, who heads the nonprofit downtown redevelopment group River City Co., said the world has been watching Chattanooga, citing the Ironman event last month.
“I really think there should be huge fines for Casey and his family for it to stay there,” she said.
White said the city spent 30 years of time and effort, along with millions of dollars, to beautify the area. The 11-acre tract adjacent to the barge is “a prime location” for development, she added.
“It’s really such a shame,” White said.
Under RCW’s removal plan crafted two months ago, it was to have salvaged and sold what it could from the barge and paid the bankruptcy estate $50,000, excluding $10,000 of its own disposal costs. Then, the following $50,000 was to have gone to RCW. Proceeds over $100,000 were to have been split between RCW and the estate, Patrick said.
However, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said RCW never submitted a required plan of work.
Corps spokesman Leon Roberts said if the barge matter isn’t resolved through bankruptcy court, the Corps would review appropriate remedies through the Department of Justice.
An adjacent property owner in August proposed to remove the barge in connection with a plan to buy most of the rest of the property to which it’s moored. Businessman Jackson Wingfield said he offered about $3.4 million for some 4.5 acres and the barge. He said he planned to have the barge towed to a “barge graveyard” in Kentucky for about $200,000.
But attorneys in the bankruptcy case preferred RCW’s plan over Wingfield’s proposal. About six acres at the site were earlier put on the market for $11.2 million.
Casey, who developed the Chattanooga Choo Choo into one of Tennessee’s top tourist attractions more than four decades ago, had proposed the floating bar and restaurant. In addition, Casey had envisioned condominiums and a hotel on the land that sits off Manufacturers Road.
Earlier this year, Casey and one of his companies filed bankruptcy petitions. They faced a civil trial over a lawsuit brought by investors who claimed they were defrauded relating to a portion of the land adjacent to the barge. Casey has denied the allegations.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.