Bankruptcy Proceedings

Since the Motown sound went silent -- except on oldies stations -- and General Motors and Chrysler (but not Ford) required life support from Washington, there has been little to recommend Detroit, Mich., to visitors, much less its residents. The recent conviction of Kwame Kilpatrick, the former mayor of Detroit, on multiple charges, including racketeering, fraud and extortion, adds another insult to the city's injury, increasing its misery. During the mid-20th century, Detroit was a vibrant city with a population of almost 2 million.

Since the Motown sound went silent -- except on oldies stations -- and General Motors and Chrysler (but not Ford) required life support from Washington, there has been little to recommend Detroit, Mich., to visitors, much less its residents. The recent conviction of Kwame Kilpatrick, the former mayor of Detroit, on multiple charges, including racketeering, fraud and extortion, adds another insult to the city's injury, increasing its misery. During the mid-20th century, Detroit was a vibrant city with a population of almost 2 million.

One hundred days into his presidency, do you think President Barack Obama is doing a good job? (1,185 votes; results are not scientific) NEXT poll Would you be less likely to buy a car from a company that was in bankruptcy proceedings? Cast your vote at baltimoresun.com/vote

A Delaware bankruptcy judge has allowed environmental groups to appeal RG Steel 's plan to limit its investigation of potential toxic contamination in the waters surrounding Sparrows Point. While bankruptcy filings normally put all litigation on hold, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Carey granted a motion to pursue the appeal filed by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation , Blue Water Baltimore and the Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper . The groups had challenged a Baltimore federal judge's approval of an agreement between RG Steel and federal and state regulators to sample for toxic contaminants no more than 50 feet offshore of the steel mill at Sparrows Point.

W. Bell & Co., the beleaguered catalog showroom retailer based in Rockville, has informed employees that the once-popular discount chain will go out of business in the near future, closing 10 stores and leaving hundreds of workers without jobs.A letter from Bell Executive Vice President Bernard Blum was distributed to employees earlier this week, explaining the company's decision but giving no date for the closings.Al Volski, manager of the Cockeysville store, said today that the letter informed workers that liquidators assigned by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Rockville will be visiting all stores within 10 or 20 days.

The owners of the short-lived Galeano's Restaurant in Little Italy were indicted yesterday on one count of wire fraud and one count of bankruptcy fraud, authorities said. Daniel H. Galeano, 61, and Teresa M. Galeano, 43, formerly of Baltimore and now of Tannersville, Pa., owned and operated their High Street restaurant from Dec. 31, 1997, through the middle of last year. They had previously operated a restaurant of the same name in Fenwick Island, Del. According to the indictment, the Galeanos fraudulently procured a mortgage loan in late 1999 to purchase a house on Stiles Street in Little Italy.

Richard M. Yaffe, president of Landmark Homes Inc., said yesterday that the beleaguered company is "winding down" and will cease as an active homebuilder.Yaffe, who recently split with partner Gary Houston, said the company has not filed for bankruptcy court protection and intends to complete 14 homes under construction. He said it will honor claims made by homeowners whose homes are still under warranty.Rumors that the Towson-based company, which has had a number of lawsuits filed against it, was in bankruptcy proceedings and was going out of business had been circulating in the local building industry.

An Elkridge-based clothing manufacturer has been forced into involuntary bankruptcy proceedings by creditors who say Wang Zi Cashmere Products Inc. owes them more than $150,000 from its expansion into the factory outlet store business.The creditors' filing, made last week in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Baltimore, said the cashmere company did not pay a contractor, a display shelf fabricator and architects who worked on some or all of the company's eight factory outlets, scattered from Massachusetts to California.

Most landlords have agreed to give Merry-Go-Round Enterprises Inc. until Jan. 31 to decide how many more of its 1,300 stores to close as it tries to reorganize under bankruptcy proceedings.There's one condition, though: The Joppa-based fashion retailer can't shut stores owned by certain landlords between Sept. 18 and Dec. 31. That way, mall operators won't have unexpected vacancies for the important holiday shopping season.The agreement, disclosed in filings in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Baltimore, increases the likelihood that Merry-Go-Round's bankruptcy proceedings will extend into 1995.

Merry-Go-Round Enterprises Inc. disclosed yesterday the extent of its losses after its first year in bankruptcy proceedings: $186.3 million.The large loss, which came on sales of $782.8 million, was inflated by lawyers' fees, lease-cancellation claims, asset write-offs and other one-time reorganization costs.But even when taxes, interest, depreciation, write-downs and reorganization expenses are excluded, the Joppa-based Merry-Go-Round lost $52.5 million for the year ended Jan. 28.The size of the net loss, $3.45 per share, was expected by Merry-Go-Round's creditors.

Are you saving more money than a Super Bowl champion? Jamal Lewis, the former Ravens running back, offered the nosy a look at his finances when he recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection . For instance, he makes $35,000 in an average month and spends $34,050 of it, leaving him with $950 left over, according to court documents. You can see the full 75-page rundown here . Highlights: o His monthly mortgage costs, not including taxes and insurance: $6,000 o Monthly vehicle payments: $5,700 o Biggest monthly outflow by far: $18,000 for regular expenses from operating a business o Charitable contributions: $0 All told, Lewis tallies up about $14.5 million in assets and $10.6 million in liabilities.

As he often does, 97-year-old Dorsey Yearley sat on a bench with his cane in his lap outside the Giant store in the Rotunda in Hampden, people-watching on a Friday afternoon. "This is plenty convenient for us," said Yearley, who lives at Roland Park Place, one of two retirement communities across the street. But his cheerful tone turned mournful when told that one of his most reliable and essential destinations in the mall, the Giant Food store, is departing after 41 years and is relocating down the street to the Fresh & Green's store, formerly a Superfresh, in the Greenspring Tower Shopping Center.

They were still buying General Motors shares on Thursday, as if the company deserved its space in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. GM stock dipped 3 cents to $1.12 on Thursday after rising more than a dime earlier. If this column were owned by the financial wires, it would assign glib and dubious causes to GM's blip. Europe eyes new GM bailouts! A few creditors agreed to a revised restructuring plan! There are no reasons to buy GM stock, however, except nostalgia and the cool picture of cars and smokestacks on the certificate.

One hundred days into his presidency, do you think President Barack Obama is doing a good job? (1,185 votes; results are not scientific) NEXT poll Would you be less likely to buy a car from a company that was in bankruptcy proceedings? Cast your vote at baltimoresun.com/vote

Delta Air Lines Inc., which is said to be on the brink of filing for bankruptcy protection, asked its pilots for a second round of wage and benefit cuts late yesterday, according to the Air Line Pilots Association. The move came as Northwest Airlines Corp., which is seeking more cuts from employees to try to fend off its own bankruptcy filing, considered giving permanent jobs to some substitute mechanics starting today. Delta's request for cuts was disclosed in a message that the pilots union put on its phone line, addressed to its 6,500 members.

READERS ASK whether to buy shares of Bethlehem Steel. This column is not in the business of giving stock tips, partly because picking stocks is difficult to do and be right. But offering advice on Bethlehem Steel shares is easy. For that reason, and because larger lessons can be drawn from the sorry Bethlehem tale, we make an exception. This column's official investment recommendation on Bethlehem Steel stock is: No. Don't even think about it. A "strong sell" recommendation is not negative enough for Bethlehem Steel.

State Farm Insurance Co. plans to build a $32 million, 355,000-square-foot regional headquarters in Frederick, a move that will keep 678 jobs there, the company's regional vice president said yesterday."

What would you recommend someone to do who actually owns Enron stock, such as myself. My feeling is that I should just hang on to it, since it's worth nothing anyway, and it may just resurrect. It's a long shot, but one never knows. Don't get your hopes up. Shareholders with stock in a company that's entered bankruptcy proceedings rarely recover anything, said Peter A. Chapman, president of Bankruptcy Creditors' Service Inc. of Trenton, N.J., and the editor of newsletters that track specific companies through bankruptcy proceedings.

Last summer, a bankrupt US Airways Group Inc. wowed airline analysts with a recovery plan that seemed likely to lift the troubled carrier out of a financial hole made deeper by its failed merger with United Airlines and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. But recent setbacks suggest elements of the Arlington, Va.-based airline's bankruptcy recovery plan may be in trouble as travelers book fewer trips. United's own bankruptcy, filed just last week, could shrink the benefits of a code-share alliance between the two carriers that was supposed to net US Airways $150 million in additional revenue annually.

The owners of the short-lived Galeano's Restaurant in Little Italy were indicted yesterday on one count of wire fraud and one count of bankruptcy fraud, authorities said. Daniel H. Galeano, 61, and Teresa M. Galeano, 43, formerly of Baltimore and now of Tannersville, Pa., owned and operated their High Street restaurant from Dec. 31, 1997, through the middle of last year. They had previously operated a restaurant of the same name in Fenwick Island, Del. According to the indictment, the Galeanos fraudulently procured a mortgage loan in late 1999 to purchase a house on Stiles Street in Little Italy.