Judge rejects Spinosa’s request to put Perkins Rowe foreclosure on hold

A federal judge has cleared the way for KeyBank National Association to move forward with the authorized foreclosure sale of Perkins Rowe. In a ruling issued today, U.S. District Judge James Brady denied developer Tommy Spinosa’s request that the court stay—or put on hold—execution of the judgment it issued against him last month while he appeals to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. Brady’s ruling comes just one day after KeyBank, which is owed nearly $202 million by Spinosa and his companies for the project, filed court documents arguing against a stay of execution on the grounds that Spinosa has failed to post a required bond of $242.3 million, 120% of the judgment against him. Such a swift decision is unusual in the three-year-old case, but Brady didn’t mince words in his ruling. “The court finds KeyBank is correct on all counts,” he writes. “As to the arguments made by Perkins Rowe in its motion to stay, the court finds that they lack merit.” KeyBank declined to comment; and Spinosa’s attorney, Alan Beebe, did not return a call for comment. Sources familiar with the case, however, say a foreclosure sale is now imminent. —Stephanie Riegel