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Virginia
West Virginia gov's historic Greenbrier hotel avoids foreclosure as he runs for Senate
The family of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice has reached an agreement with a credit collection company to avoid the foreclosure of their historic hotel as he runs for US Senate, the resort announced Thursday.
The Republican governor’s family had been set to appear in court Friday to ask a judge to halt the auction of The Greenbrier, which had been scheduled for Tuesday.
That hearing has been canceled.
“It’s taken care of, and we move forward, and The Greenbrier is as whole as it can possibly be,” Justice said at a news briefing. “The Greenbrier is going to be in our family forevermore.”
The hotel came under threat of auction after JPMorgan Chase sold a longstanding loan taken out by the governor to a credit collection company, McCormick 101 — a subsidiary of Beltway Capital — which declared it to be in default.
In a statement, the Justice family said it had reached an agreement with Beltway Capital to “receive a specific amount to be paid in full by October 24, 2024.”
The family said it had already secured the money, although the Justices did not specify the amount.
“Under the agreement, Beltway Capital will Beltway reserves its rights if the Justice family fails to perform,” the statement reads.
A message left with Beltway Capital wasn’t immediately returned Thursday.
Justice defended his family’s business practices at Thursday’s briefing and repeated past claims that JPMorgan Chase’s sale of The Greenbrier loan was a politically motivated effort to hurt his US Senate campaign.
“We had a 14-year working relationship with JPMorgan, and then shortly after the primary where I was the winner — hands down, you’re going to the U.S. Senate, no matter what anybody says under the sun — it makes, it made, total no sense other than political, it made no sense at all,” he said.
Justice said that his family had made payments on the JPMorgan as recently as June and that it was notified the loan had been sold in July without prior warning. JPMorgan Chase did not respond to an email seeking comment.
If the hotel had been sold, Justice said, “there would have been carnage and devastation like you can’t imagine to the great people of The Greenbrier,” referring to jobs that could have been lost.
The auction, which had been set to occur at a courthouse Tuesday in the small city of Lewisburg, involved 60.5 acres, including the hotel and parking lot.
Justice family attorneys filed a motion this week for a preliminary injunction to try to halt the auction of The Greenbrier.
They claimed that a 2014 deed of trust approved by the governor was defective because JPMorgan didn’t obtain consent from the Greenbrier Hotel Corp.’s directors or owners, and that auctioning the property violates the company’s obligation to act in “good faith and deal fairly” with the corporation.
They also argued, in part, that the auction would harm the economy and threaten hundreds of jobs.
About 400 employees at The Greenbrier hotel received notice this week from an attorney for the health care provider Amalgamated National Health Fund saying they would lose coverage Tuesday, the scheduled date of the auction, unless the Justice family paid $2.4 million in missing contributions.
Peter Bostic, a union official with the Workers United Mid-Atlantic Regional Joint Board, said that the Justice family hasn’t contributed to employees’ health fund in four months, and that an additional $1.2 million in contributions will soon be due, according to the letter the board received from Ronald Richman, an attorney with Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP, the firm representing the fund.
The letter also said some contributions were taken out of employees’ paychecks but never transferred to the fund, concerning union officials.
Justice dismissed concerns about the claims Thursday, telling reporters that “insurance payments were made and were being made on a regular basis.”
“There is no way that the great union employees at The Greenbrier are going to go without insurance,” he said. “There is no possible way.”
Justice is running for Senate against Democrat Glenn Elliott, a former mayor of Wheeling. Justice, who owns dozens of companies and had a net worth estimated at $513 million by Forbes Magazine in 2021, has been accused in court cases of being late in paying millions for family business debts and fines for unsafe working conditions at his coal mines.
He began serving the first of his two terms as governor in 2017, after buying The Greenbrier out of bankruptcy in 2009.
The hotel has hosted US presidents, royalty and, from 2010 until 2019, a PGA Tour tournament.
Justice’s family also owns The Greenbrier Sporting Club, a private luxury community with a members-only “resort within a resort.”
That property was scheduled to be auctioned off this year in an attempt by Carter Bank & Trust of Martinsville, Virginia, to recover more than $300 million in business loans defaulted by the governor’s family, but a court battle delayed that process.
Virginia
PHOTOS: Virginia Beach Police investigate firearm-related incident at Carriage House Apartments
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia Beach Police are at the scene of a firearm-related incident at Carriage House Apartments Saturday afternoon, according to the Virginia Beach Police Department.
The department also confirmed there are no shooting victims at this time.
10 On Your Side is at the scene and working to gather more information about the situation.
10 On Your Side will update this story when more information is available.
PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia Democrats are not happy about a state Supreme Court decision declaring last month’s referendum to draw new congressional districts null and void.
Democrats, however, have filed a motion asking the Virginia Court to delay its 4-3 decision while they file an emergency appeal to the United States Supreme Court.
Virginia’s current map that favors Democrats by a narrow 6-5 margin will stay in effect for the midterms. Both sides, though, have a lot to say to say about today’s decision.
Two months ago, you couldn’t avoid the political ads and mailers on both sides of the issue.
“Everybody remembers we got a few million dollars worth of flyers in our mailboxes, and everything with redistricting that whole referendum has now been overturned by the court decision,” said Old Dominion University Associate Professor of Political Science Jesse Richman.
On April 21, Virginia voters approved redrawing congressional maps that would have given Democrats a 10-1 advantage, giving them a strong chance to pick up four additional seats in November.
More than two weeks later, the Virginia Supreme Court rendered the results null and void, saying the required constitutional processes were not followed before this was put up for a vote. So what does that mean for Virginians?
“As it is, we stay with the districts we have,” Richman said. “If [Democrat] Bobby Scott’s your representative, he’s still your representative. The lines aren’t moving. If [Republican] Jen Kiggans is your representative, [she’s] still your representative.”
Scott and Kiggans spoke to 10 On Your Side shortly after today’s decision.
“I’m disappointed,” Scott said. “People voted, three million people voted, it carried in 55 of the 100 House of Delegates districts, so the people spoke.”
“It’s a big day for Virginia today,” Kiggans said. “It’s a victory for the rule of law [and] it’s a victory for fairness.”
That split reaction has also been felt among voters, some even rallying in front of the Virginia Supreme Court. One of them was Hampton’s NAACP Branch President Gaylene Kanoyton.
“We have got to make sure that we mobilize and don’t let this get us down,” Kanoyton said. “We need to be energized.”
Virginia Democrats have vowed to fight Friday’s ruling, saying they intend to file an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“I expect we’ll see more intense political campaigning in the midterms in this area because of the Supreme Court’s decision,” Richman said.
90+ artists to exhibit on the Va. Beach boardwalk with the backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Get ready for the largest surf art show on the East Coast!
The 17th Annual Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront on the boardwalk, 3rd through 7th streets, will begin Saturday, May 23, through Sunday, May 24, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m., ending on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Courtesy: VB Surf Art Expo (Antone Nixon, with VB Sunrise)
The Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo features over 90 regional artists from Maine to the Mid-Atlantic region and down through Florida, capturing the essence of the beach, the ocean, wildlife, sea life, and surfing-related themes in art.
The Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo is partnered with the Coastal Edge Steel Pier Classic and the surfing competition at the 1st Street Jetty.
This event is an official kick-off to the summer season at the Oceanfront.
“Isn’t seeing an artist’s interpretation of the beach vibe the very best way to enjoy it? We drip salt water from our pores,” says Jodie Woodward, founder and show director of the Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo.
Surf art comes in all mediums, including painting, photography, jewelry, sculpture, ceramics, wood, metal, fiber, glass, and mixed media, all available for purchase at the art expo.
Each artist has a special connection with surfing, the ocean, beach life, sea life, seascape scenes, shells, coral, dolphins, fish, lighthouses, mermaids, custom surfboard and skateboard designs.
Expect to see more Patriotic themes this year in alignment with America’s 250th birthday, officials say.
“We can’t wait for the 23rd Annual Coastal Edge Steel Pier Classic presented by Katin,” says D. Nachnani, president of Coastal Edge. “This Memorial Day Weekend, the heart of Virginia Beach becomes the soul of East Coast surfing. We’re proud to host the WSL World Tour Longboard event alongside our professional shortboard competition. With over 300 athletes representing more than a dozen countries, and a combined $16,000 purse on the line, this is more than a contest—it’s a celebration of art, athleticism, music, and the surf culture that defines our coast,” Nachnani went on to say.
For more information about the Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo, click here, call (757) 348-1048, connect on the Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo’s Facebook here, or their Instagram here.
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