business

A longtime business partner of Bob Lux is suing the Twin Cities developer, claiming that Lux improperly denied him a stake in some redevelopment projects.

In a suit filed last month in Hennepin County Circuit Court, Thomas Dillon said Lux reneged on agreements to give him minority interest in three deals connected with Alatus Partners, a company formed by Lux in 2005.

One deal involves a collection of several properties on the south side of downtown Minneapolis, including the Ramada Downtown Minneapolis, which Lux recently closed to pursue unspecified redevelopment plans. The others are a collection of five downtown parking ramps Alatus bought from the city last year and a site in the Seven Corners neighborhood near the West Bank of the University of Minnesota.

Lux's attorney, Andrew Parker, said last week that the allegations "are made up of whole cloth." He said Lux met every contractual obligation he had with Dillon.

The suit says the agreement giving Dillon an interest in development projects dates from 1999, when he was a principal with another Lux company, Apex Asset Management Corp. Lux dissolved Apex after forming Alatus, but the suit says that change should not have affected the deal to give Dillon a stake in Alatus projects.

The suit says Lux has deprived Dillon of his share in projects through a complicated series of sale and merger transactions that resulted in the formation of a new entity with partners including Alatus and Invesco, a British pension fund manager.

Dillon's attorney, Norman Baer, said there are no estimates yet on the amount his client is owed. But he said the total value of the three projects is "many millions of dollars." Alatus paid $5 million for the Ramada, about $10 million for the neighboring properties and $65 million for the parking lots. The suit is seeking damages "well in excess of $50,000."

Redevelopment at a key intersection in St. Louis Park is underway with the recent start of two projects planned for the area of Interstate 394 and Hwy. 100.

St. Louis Park-based JMW Development has begun work on Cedar Point Retail Center, a 12,000-square-foot complex at Park Place, Parkdale Drive and Cedar Lake Road. Tenants signed so far include Pei Wei Asian Diner, Caribou Coffee and FedEx/Kinko's. JMW Principal Paul Maenner said his firm is looking for two or three tenants for the remaining 4,800 square feet.

Maenner said he expects the center's shell to be complete in June so that tenants can build out their space and open by September.

Cedar Point will be a neighbor to a much larger mixed-use development planned by Duke Realty Corp. The West End, a $400 million project that will include a hotel, 1.1 million square feet of office space and 340,000 square feet of retail space, recently was approved by the City Council. No tenants have been announced.

Bloomington-based United Properties is expanding its reach westward with the recent acquisition of Ojala and Co., a Denver-based commercial office and industrial park developer. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

United has operated a retail development business in Denver since 2005. It plans to operate Ojala as a subsidiary.

Susan Feyder • 612-673-1723