Bank disputes Associated Grocers shutdown
Camden National Bank, the holder of a $4.8 million mortgage on Associated Grocers of Maine, is seeking to halt the Gardiner cooperative's closure.
A Superior Court judge last week appointed a receiver to manage the closure of Associated Grocers per request of Savings Bank of Maine, which is owed $6 million by the grocery supplier. But Camden National Bank says it did not receive proper notice about the decision, and yesterday filed documents asking the judge to vacate the receivership order and schedule an emergency hearing, according to the Kennebec Journal. The bank also argues that it, not Savings Bank of Maine, has "first priority lien" on some of Associated Grocers' equipment and machinery. "Each day that passes increases the risk that CNB's collateral will be sold," the complaint reads.
Associated Grocers is a retailers' cooperative that serves 300 independent supermarkets in Maine and other New England states. Deliveries of some products have already been stopped, and independent grocers were told to find other suppliers. A state rapid response team and union leaders have already met with Associate Grocers' 141 employees to explain unemployment benefits, and second-shift workers have already been laid off, according to the paper.
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