Two Orland Park developments struggle in tough retail market

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Wolf Point commercial property at 159th Street and Wolf Road in Orland Park has fallen into foreclosure. | Larry Ruehl~Sun-Times Media

Updated: May 9, 2012 10:09AM

While Orland Park long ago cemented its reputation as a retailing hub, two big retail developments in the village are struggling to achieve their potential.

Dogged by foreclosures, Wolf Crossing and Wolf Point Plaza, both at 159th Street and Wolf Road, weren’t helped by a recession that slowed demand for new retail space.

And a lawsuit filed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. alleges negligent lending practices by the bank that financed Wolf Point Plaza.

Wolf Crossing, southwest of the intersection, now is in the hands of First Midwest Bank, which inherited the problem property from Palos Bank and Trust after that bank failed in August 2010.

Tenants included Anthony’s Pizza, Cafe Miele and Chatham Rug & Flooring, but the plaza hasn’t had a traffic-drawing anchor tenant for some time.

Originally called Bobak’s Plaza, it was anchored by Frank Bobak Fresh Marketplace, which after a nasty court fight involving Bobak family members became Frank & Angie Simply Fresh Foods. The store later was Green Food & Produce, which also closed, and the store remains vacant.

A representative with the center’s manager, Zifkin Real Estate Group, was not available for comment. Zifkin also manages Orland Park Crossing, another retail center that went through foreclosure.

At the northeast corner of the intersection, work progresses on a new home for BMW of Orland Park, which plans to move from its location at 8470 W. 159th St. But it’s unclear whether the rest of the planned Wolf Point Plaza ever will materialize, and a foreclosure sale of the property is scheduled for this month.

Foreclosure delays BMW move

In December 2009, Orland Park trustees approved a sales-tax sharing agreement with BMW, in which the dealership would get back a portion of the tax revenue it generates for the village. The 10-year agreement required that BMW open by the end of September.

The dealership sought an extension late last year, citing a delay in moving due in part to the failure of the shopping center’s lender, Wheatland Bank. The revised agreement calls for BMW to open the 57,000-square-foot dealership by the end of May.

Along with BMW, Wolf Point Plaza was to include two restaurants, a bank, a drugstore and 27,000 square feet of additional retail space.

Two years ago, Wheatland Bank sued to foreclose on the $12.3 million mortgage on the property, and in April 2010 regulators closed the bank. The FDIC, on the hook for millions of dollars in losses on commercial loans Wheatland made, later sued the bank’s officers and directors, alleging they were grossly negligent in scrutinizing the loans and the borrowers.

Bank officials pursued an “aggressive and reckless asset growth strategy,” and sometimes didn’t follow the bank’s lending policies, according to the FDIC. The lawsuit cites loans made to “favored shareholders” with terms that were generous to borrowers but “abusive and extremely harmful” to the bank.

The FDIC alleges the bank officers were lax in approving two loans totaling more than $14 million to Charles Markopolous, Wolf Point Plaza’s developer. Neither loan was for the Orland Park project, and Markopolous isn’t a defendant in the lawsuit and isn’t accused of any wrongdoing.

Markopolous, who owned 100,000 shares of Wheatland Bank, defaulted on the loans in 2009, and the bank wound up losing about $5.8 million on the two loans, according to the FDIC. Markopolous didn’t return a phone call seeking comment.

FDIC trying to find a buyer

The FDIC will offer the Orland Park property for sale at a Jan. 16 auction in Chicago. The FDIC, at its website, markets land and other assets it’s picked up from failed banks across the country.

Markopolous first submitted plans for Wolf Point Plaza in summer 2008, just before financial markets collapsed and soured demand for commercial space.

It’s not clear who might bid on the property or whether another developer would pick up where Markopolous left off. Orland Park hasn’t received an update regarding any future development plans, according to Karie Friling, the village’s director of development services.