Tedreck Estate moves to repossess Tedi of Samoa building and Fagatogo Square

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Locally based company, Avapui II, owner the Tedi of Samoa Building and Fagatogo Square Building, is seeking a “Restraining Order” from the High Court to prevent representatives of the Estate of Bill Tedreck from interfering with the building’s tenants.

The court has set a hearing for Aug. 13.

Bill and Apoua Tedreck sold the downtown business complex to Avapui II a few years ago. Bill Tedreck has since passed away.

Avapui II — the plaintiff — alleges in an Aug. 1 a court filing made by local attorney David Vargas and Archie Leoso had interfered with tenants of the building. Besides Vargas and Leoso, another defendant named in the complaint is the Estate of Bill Tedreck by its administrator Apoua Tedreck.

Plaintiff’s legal move comes after the building’s tenants were served with a July 23 letter from Vargas, who explained that he represents the Mortgagee for both the Tedi of Samoa Building and Fagatogo Square Building.

“My client is in the process of foreclosing the mortgage and exercising the rights under the mortgage and promissory note for this property,” Vargas wrote. “Specifically the Mortgagee will be exercising its rights under the mortgage... and will be taking possession of the property effective immediately.”

“Accordingly and pursuant to the ‘Contingent Assignment of Rents’ executed by Avapui II in favor of my client on April 27, 2010”, Vargas tells tenants that “you will be required” to submit all future rent to Albert or Anna Young at PJK fish market in Utulei.

“If you fail to pay the rent as instructed, it will be at your own peril,” he said and shared brief information with the tenants.

Vargas explained that Mortgagee is authorize under the mortgage with Avapui II “to take possession of the premises and to receive rents due on the mortgage property” when Mortgagor, Avapui II, defaults on the monthly payments required under the mortgage and promissory note.

“The mortgage and promissory note payment obligations were declared in default on June 21, 2018 and Avapui Lua has failed to cure the default,” he said.

COURT REQUEST

In a court filing, attorney for Avapui Lua, Matailupevao Leupolu, explained that his client and the Estate of Bill Tedreck has been negotiating a final purchase price for the Tedi of Samoa Building and “were close to finalizing a deal.”

Around Feb. 2 this year, attorney for Avapui wrote to Vargas that “there have been past modifications of the obligation, which the Tedrecks as the Lender are only classified as ‘accommodations’ and are now refusing to now take (that) into account,” according to the plaintiff’s court filing.

One of the modifications was a memo from the Tedrecks on Feb. 14, 2013 in which the payments amount was changed to $16,000 per month. Previous to that, there was another modification where the payment was reduced from $20,000 to $18,000.

“The fact that there have been payments modifications made, which the Lender is not now acknowledging, is significant in this matter,” the court document said.

Plaintiff also points out that the Lease Agreement that the Tedrecks have from ASG initially ran from Dec. 11, 1987 to Jan. 10, 2017, and is renewable for an additional 25-years, provided that written notice of a request to renew is given six months in advance.

Furthermore, Avapui II did send a notice to renew the Lease even though the Lender (the Tedrecks) were supposed to initiate the renewal of the Lease with ASG “but if the Lender didn’t act properly, then defendants have no right to now act as if they have rights in the property sufficient to allow them to foreclose against Avapui II.”

Court documents state that the last correspondence from Avapui II to the Estate of Bill Tedreck and through its Administrator, Apoua Tedreck “was a counter offer” of $1 million but was awaiting an acceptance from the Estate of Bill Tedreck “but it never received an answer or any counter-counter offer.”

According to the complaint, Section 11 of the Lease prohibits any involuntary assignment of any interest in the property and Section 15 requires the Tedrecks to give written notice to ASG of any action affecting title to, or possession of the property.

“If the Lender goes through with foreclosure or interfering with some of the tenants of Tedi of Samoa Building and demand that they make their monthly payments to them, then they have violated Section 11 of the Lease and unless they have given the ASG notice of what they are now doing, they have violated Section 15 of the Lease,” the plaintiff argued.

The plaintiff further argued that the defendants “must [be] restrained from collecting rents” from the tenants; “taking money from the tenants”; and “further restrained them from taking a foreclosure action against Avapui II.”

According to the plaintiff, the “court needs to order” Vargas and Leoso that “they must be restrained” from going to the Tedi of Samoa Building, “and interferring with the tenants by locking their doors and demanding that they pay up their monthly rents to them.”

In closing the plaintiffs request the court for a Restraining Order against Vargas and Leoso from “interfering with the tenants... and demanding that they pay their monthly rental to them.”