LandSource Emerges from Bankruptcy

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Newhall Ranch developer LandSource Communities Development LLC said Monday that it has emerged from Chapter 11 reorganization as Newhall Land Development LLC. The new management team consists of several former executives of Miami homebuilder Lennar Corp.

Newhall Land Development’ s primary investment is Newhall Land and Farming Co., which owns 15,000 acres of undeveloped land the largest such chunk of property left in Los Angeles County — and 700 acres of other commercial land and property in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Newhall Ranch was intended as a 21,000 home development west of the Golden State (5) Freeway in the Santa Clara River valley, but environmental concerns and other regulatory delays slowed development. Lennar bought into the project in 2004.

The reorganized company will be managed by Emile Haddad, chief executive of Five Point Communities Management Inc., a new management company jointly owned by Haddad and Lennar. Haddad, who was Lennar’s chief investment officer, will be joined by more than 20 former Lennar executives.

Lennar last month bought back, for $138 million, a 15 percent stake that it had sold to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System for more than $970 million. Calpers later wrote off the investment when the venture went bankrupt.

In addition to Lennar, Newhall Land’s ownership includes a group of investment funds led by Anchorage Advisors LLC, Third Avenue Management LLC, Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC, Marathon Asset Management LP and TPG Credit Management L.P.

Before the real estate market decline, the developers hoped to break ground next year. Newhall Land did not provide a new timeline in its announcement.

“Today marks an important day in Newhall Land’s future,” Haddad said in a statement. “Newhall now has an unleveraged balance sheet, sufficient cash to fund operations going forward and is well positioned to navigate this unprecedented market.”

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