Looking for common ground

Members and supporters of Church Women United join hands to pray Monday morning before heading into the Bureau County Courthouse to begin a bench trial on the complaint filed against the CWU as owners of The Closet retail store in Princeton. The complaint was filed by the Princeton GM group, owners of the former Walmart building, who is seeking truck access around the rear of The Closet for the rest of the building. (BCR photo/Donna Barker)

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PRINCETON — Instead of attending to their volunteer work at The Closet retail shop on Monday, members of Church Women United (CWU) spent eight hours in court dealing with a complaint filed against the CWU by the Princeton GM LLC, owners of the old Walmart building in Princeton.

The PGM developers, who are headquartered in Kansas City, were represented in court by Kansas City attorney James Sullivan and by Central Realty representative Robert Ricca, who serves as managing agent for PGM.

The developers are asking the courts to make The Closet remove its side gate and fencing, which the developers say prohibit them access to the back of their building and prohibits them from building a needed loading dock in the back of their building. The developers say that area is considered “common area” to all businesses in that Princeton Shopping Center area, according to an easement, covenant and restrictions agreement between the property owners.

The developers also want to pave a new road slightly to the south of The Closet road, relocate The Closet drop-off shed, and to pave a good portion of The Closet property at the back of the CWU building.

From the witness stand, Ricca said common areas are all areas common to all tenants and landowners which do not have existing buildings, such as parking lots, entrances and lighting. Since The Closet gate and fence property does not have a building on it, that property is to be considered common area and available for use by other property owners. Common areas are not to be detrimental to the development of other properties, he said.

According to Ricca, PMG has had serious communications with Dollar Family, Dollar Tree and Sears about leasing parts of the old Walmart building, but those businesses need access to the rear of the building, which is now blocked by The Closet gate and fence.

The 66,000-square-foot former Walmart building currently has one tenant, Tractor Supply Co., which rents about 22,400 square feet on the north side of the building. TSC uses a loading dock on the northwest corner of the building, but that dock is not available to other potential businesses.

In cross examining Ricca, LaSalle attorney Tom McClintock, representing CWU, said the court will have to determine what is or is not common area, not the developers. The problem came when the developers negotiated a lease with TSC, which prohibited the use of the northwest loading dock by other tenants.

There has to be other options instead of taking property use away from The Closet, McClintock said. Some of those options could include a control panel lock at the gate, accessing the back of the building from the TSC side or building an interior delivery hallway.

The easement, covenant and restrictions agreement is not clear and up for varied interpretations as to what common areas are and what can or cannot be restricted use of those areas, McClintock said.

At the end of the trial, Associate Circuit Judge C.J. Hollerich will have to make a determination as to what does or does not entail “common areas” and how those areas can be used. Court will resume today, Tuesday, at 8:15 a.m. The plaintiffs have one more witness to call to the stand before the Church Women United and its attorney Tom McCllintock of LaSalle, get their chance to present their side of the case.

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