Bloggytown

        
Tweet

Email

Print
Share

Thursday, July 2, 2020

Bloggytown

Orlando Sentinel and parent company Tribune Publishing being sued for unpaid rent

Posted By Matthew Moyer on Thu, Jul 2, 2020 at 4:52 PM

click image

PHOTO COURTESY ORLANDO SENTINEL/FACEBOOK

Photo courtesy Orlando Sentinel/Facebook

Local daily newspaper the Orlando Sentinel has been sued by its landlord for three months of alleged unpaid rent, according to court documents from the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida.

The Miami-based landlord Orlando Opportunities South B LLC and Midtown Opportunities VIB LLC sued both the Sentinel and parent company, Tribune Publishing Co., on June 18 for rent money owed on its 18-acre downtown campus.

Orlando Business Journal reports that the landlord is seeking $369,623.77 for office space and $164,931.53 for industrial space. The Sentinel's lease on the building expires in 2023.

Related Gov. DeSantis extends statewide eviction and foreclosure moratorium mere hours before it expires

Gov. DeSantis extends statewide eviction and foreclosure moratorium mere hours before it expires

By Matthew Moyer

Blogs

Tribune Publishing – which owns multiple newspapers around the country including the Chicago Tribune, the Baltimore Sun and the South Florida Sun Sentinel – had earlier noted in a June SEC filing that it was withholding rent payments for a "majority of its facilities" amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, publisher Nancy A. Meyer sent a memo to staff this week confirming the SEC filing: “Consistent with our past internal messaging and communication from Tribune Publishing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, many of our facilities withheld rent in April, May and June due to the pandemic.”

Tribune Publishing is currently attempting to fend off a gradual takeover by vulture investment hedge fund Alden Global Capital, adding Alden's co-founder Randall Smith to Tribune's board as a bargaining chip to extend a "standstill" agreement that would prevent a hostile buyout by Alden into 2021.

_
Please follow CDC guidelines and Orange County advisories to stay safe, and please support this free publication. Our small but mighty team is working tirelessly to bring you news on how coronavirus is affecting Central Florida. Please consider making a one-time or monthly donation. Every little bit helps.

Tags: Orlando Sentinel, Local, Media, Journalism, Newspaper, Tribune Media, Rent, Dispute, Coronavirus, Image

We welcome readers to submit letters regarding articles and content in Orlando Weekly. Letters should be a minimum of 150 words, refer to content that has appeared on Orlando Weekly, and must include the writer's full name, address, and phone number for verification purposes. No attachments will be considered. Writers of letters selected for publication will be notified via email. Letters may be edited and shortened for space.

Email us at feedback@orlandoweekly.com.

Support Local Journalism.
Join the Orlando Weekly Press Club

Local journalism is information. Information is power. And we believe everyone deserves access to accurate independent coverage of their community and state. Our readers helped us continue this coverage in 2020, and we are so grateful for the support.

Help us keep this coverage going in 2021. Whether it's a one-time acknowledgement of this article or an ongoing membership pledge, your support goes to local-based reporting from our small but mighty team.

Join the Orlando Weekly Press Club for as little as $5 a month.