Rossville: Mill demolition postponed until Wednesday

photo Steven Morgan uses a back hoe to pull electrical wires of the Peerless Mill in Rossville, Ga., on Monday. The owner, Les Coffee, plans on demolishing the 85-year old mill having owned it for five years only reaching 20-percent of its capacity of tenants.

The owner of the Peerless Mill in Rossville was forced to stop demolition today as the company that holds the note was granted an emergency injunction.

Les Coffey, who has owned the mill since 2007, said he was ordered to halt work until 9 a.m. Wednesday when he is scheduled to meet with officials from RDC, the company that sold him the mill and still holds the note.

An attorney representing RDC said the security note does not allow Coffey to tear down the mill without the holding company's consent. The attorney said he was not authorized to comment officially but said RDC had not given consent for demolition.

The deed and security note for the property specifically requires Coffey's company, Peerless Self Storage LLC, to "maintain the premises in good condition and repair."

"No part of the premises shall be materially altered without the prior written consent of grantee," the deed states.

On Monday Coffey, who bought the Peerless mill in 2007, was granted a permit from the city to tear down the 105-year-old structure. He said he plans to sell the bricks, beams and metal from the 27-acre mill to salvage companies.

When the mill filed for bankruptcy in December 2008, Coffey owed RDC almost $1.1 million, records show.

In the filings, creditors including Tennessee American Water and EPB also listed $18,514 worth of other debts.

For complete details, see tomorrow's Chattanooga Times Free Press.

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