York County and Rock Hill (N.C.) will have to wait a bit longer in efforts to recover public money given to the failed Carolina Panthers’ $500 million practice facility and headquarters after a federal judge on Dec. 14 delayed the confirmation of bankruptcy proceedings, the Rock Hill Post and Courier reported. GT Real Estate, the development company controlled by the NFL team’s owner David Tepper, had sought the judge’s approval of its plan to pay off debts incurred during construction at the site along Interstate 77, closing out bankruptcy proceedings first filed in June. Tepper’s company also sought approval of separate settlement agreements recently struck with the county and city over the combined $41 million in public funds contributed to the project, intended to cover the cost of roads and other infrastructure. But Bankruptcy Judge Karen Owens raised concerns on the proposal from Tepper’s lawyers on waivers that would bar subcontractors from seeking further repayment from the general contractor and Tepper entities. The judge will not approve the bankruptcy proceedings until Tepper’s companies can present a restructuring plan that is satisfactory, she said in court. Owens and Tepper’s lawyers are scheduled to meet Dec. 15 to discuss a suitable outcome. It is unknown when a final decision from the judge is expected. In the plan Tepper’s lawyers presented to Judge Owens yesterday about $150,000 in funds to subcontractors would go unpaid. The lawyers argued in court that this number was fair because $60 million was being paid to subcontractors in the process of their restructuring. The billionaire hedge fund manager pulled out of the landmark project, which was expected also to include retail, a hotel, offices and medical facilities in addition to the practice facility and team headquarters, more than halfway through construction, having spent $170 million.
