A Tampa, Fla.-based food hall operator has filed for chapter 11 protection to reorganize the debt on an Orlando location, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reported. Jamal Wilson, who launched his food halls with The Hall on Franklin in 2017, told the Tampa Bay Business Journal on Wednesday that he is reorganizing his debt "due to high construction costs" during the COVID-19 pandemic. Wilson's Orlando location, The Hall at the Yard, opened in 2021. The bankruptcy filing will not affect day-to-day operations at The Hall at the Yard, Wilsons said, and he doesn't plan to file for bankruptcy protection for any other locations. "The cost of the tenant improvements was higher than expected," according to the bankruptcy filing. "Unfortunately, the debtor borrowed funds from various MCA lenders. The debt to the MCA lenders and the exorbitant fees and costs associated therewith has been crippling. The debtor filed this case to restructure its debts and reorganize for the benefit of all creditors." The filing lists 10 MCA lenders who are owed a combined $901,055, though the amount owed to G and G Funding Group LLC is unidentified. The lenders are owed amounts ranging from $44,000 to $181,000. Secured debt also includes a $4.2 million loan to Newtek Small Business Finance. There is also a $359,000 Paycheck Protection Program loan from Kabbage LLC that is "likely unsecured," according to the filing. The largest unsecured creditors have claims that range from unknown to $119,000.
