By Maddie Orton
Arts Correspondent
The bankruptcy auction for Surflight Theatre and its properties was at the forefront of many people’s minds on Thursday, but not all of them were allowed in to witness it.
“We needed a $100,000 certified check just to go watch it. Which was news to me,” said Long Beach Island resident Tom Zanette.
The miscommunication between the public, press and event organizers was only part of the controversy surrounding the auction. Many locals expressed concern about what will become of the lot. Some gathered to hear the auction’s outcome and others came to bend the ears of potential bidders.
“We don’t have however many millions it is to save it, but we wanted to let people know that we care and we need a theater on Long Beach Island,” said LBI summer resident Jen Crawford, tearing up. “It is [emotional] for me because I hate to see it go after however many years it’s been here. I just always assumed it would be here.”
A handful of bidders gathered for the auction. Greg Russo’s $2 million bid was the highest, but he gave no indication of his plans for the property.
“Everything’s under advisement and we have no comment right now. We’re waiting for approvals,” said Russo.
But approval of his bid may never come. Russo’s $2 million bid is well below the amount of secured debt on the property, meaning it may not be a substantial enough offer for the bankruptcy trustee or the creditors to consider it.
Is it possible that this would go into foreclosure? “Yeah, certainly,” said Auction Advisors Managing Member Oren Klein. “It’s possible foreclosure could happen. There are a lot of options that may happen in this case.”
That’s a frustration for former Artistic Director Steve Steiner. He says he’s submitted proposals since March to buy the theater for nearly $3 million with funds from an anonymous backer. However, Steiner says, he lost that backer when it took bankruptcy trustee Jack McDonnell months to respond.
McDonnell’s legal counsel, Brian Crowley, disputes that claim, saying: “There was never a clear and substantive offer made for the property by Mr. Steiner or parties we think are related to Mr. Steiner. The reality is there was always ambiguity in who the investors were, and many times it wasn’t clear who they were or what the actual resources were.”
Steiner says, whether through him or someone else, his wish for the space is simple. “My hope right now is that someone who wants it to be a theater is the winning bidder,” he says.
If Russo’s $2 million bid is considered, Klein says the next step is a bankruptcy court hearing in Trenton with the judge, auction companies, trustee and creditors. And while the highest bid usually wins, the trustee can take other factors into consideration. Whether public interest in having a theater is one of them remains to be seen.