ROYAL PALM BEACH, Fla. — A major development project in Royal Palm Beach that WPTV has been following for months is facing significant financial challenges that could impact its future.
Tuttle Royale, a 200-acre project at the corner of U.S. 441 and Southern Boulevard designed to create a "city-place" type destination in the area, hit a major snag after Main Street at Tuttle Royale LLC, one of the companies tied to it, filed for bankruptcy.
WATCH BELOW: WPTV's Michael Hoffman sits down with Developer Brian Tuttle
Developer Brian Tuttle said the highly anticipated project ran into trouble after loans expired, leaving more than $47 million in debt.
"The loan expired approximately two years ago due to the high interest rates and the uneasiness in the capital markets; we weren't able to refinance it," Tuttle said.
In July, a Palm Beach County Circuit Court ruled Tuttle owed the lender, The Fuse Group, $47.8 million. The ruling gave him until this past Wednesday to pay the money back or face a court-ordered auction of the property.
Tuttle said that the ruling forced him to file for bankruptcy.
"I couldn't allow the sale to go through. It would have wiped out all the unsecured creditors," he said.
When asked if that meant nobody would have gotten their money back, Tuttle responded with one word.
"Zero," he said.
WPTV's Michael Hoffman reached out to The Fuse Group multiple times for comment, but has not received a response.
Despite the bankruptcy, Tuttle said he has another backer — The Ardent Companies of Atlanta, Georgia — prepared to pay off the full balance and keep the project on track.
"Obviously, a bankruptcy puts it in jeopardy. But given that we've got such a strong equity, a partner who wants to move forward, and given that what we're proposing is to build it and to pay the bank and unsecured creditors, we feel very, very confident we'll get this worked out in short order," Tuttle said.
Tuttle said the next steps are to get a third-party mediator to get the project back on track.
"I've worked with these people for over 10 years," Tuttle said. "They put their heart and soul in it."