The 67-acre Diamond District site is bordered by Arthur Ashe Boulevard, Hermitage Road, the interstate and the railroad tracks. (BizSense file)
Developers of Richmond’s Diamond District project have been thrown a legal curveball from one of their former partners in the form of a $40 million lawsuit.
Thalhimer Realty Partners and Loop Capital were sued last week by Republic Properties, which once led a previous iteration of the project’s development group.
The lawsuit filed in Richmond Circuit Court alleges that TRP and Loop breached their venture partnership with Republic when they formed a new entity and entered into a revised development agreement with the city. That new LLC, Diamond District Partners, includes TRP and Loop but not Republic.
Republic argues in the lawsuit that its former partners struck out on their own without first dissolving their partnership with Republic, which had assembled the previous group under its RVA Diamond Partners LLC.
The team change was made as the city pivoted its financing approach for the $2.4 billion project that includes a new baseball stadium to replace The Diamond. TRP and Loop, as Diamond District Partners, are now signed on to develop a 30-acre first phase of the 67-acre mixed-use development, while development of the anchor ballpark is being managed separately by the Richmond Flying Squirrels.
That arrangement is a change from the original development agreement with RVA Diamond Partners, which the city selected through a competitive solicitation process in 2022. The Republic-led team had reached terms with the city to develop the entire Diamond District project, including the new ballpark.
The lawsuit alleges that TRP negotiated the development agreement without involvement from Republic in violation of their venture partnership agreement. It says that the revised development agreement is based on documents that Republic paid for or created and that Republic maintains rights to the project through the still-active RVA Diamond Partners LLC.
Republic says it stands to lose $40 million in value from the project if TRP and Loop continue without it. It is seeking that amount from the suit’s defendants, which in addition to TRP and Loop include Diamond District Partners, TRP principal Jason Guillot, Loop CEO James Reynolds and two other Loop associates.
The City of Richmond is not a defendant in the suit.
Requests to TRP and Loop for comment on the suit were not returned Wednesday afternoon. Guillot, who has been leading the project locally, could not be reached Wednesday.
‘City believed that Republic was being uncooperative’
The 2023 development team selection was formally announced in a ceremony outside The Diamond. (BizSense file photo)
The suit stems from a lengthy negotiation process that resulted in the original development agreement, which City Council approved in May 2023, and continued over the past year as disagreements arose over the size and cost of the new stadium, currently planned for 10,000 seats and projected to cost over $110 million.
According to the suit, in the days leading up to council’s approval, city officials demanded that TRP be designated as RVA Diamond Partners’ lead representative in its dealings with the city, and that the group’s voting rights be structured “so that no one member would be in a position to preclude” RVA Diamond Partners from pursuing the project in accordance with the development agreement.
The suit states that the city made those demands “because, with Defendants’ encouragement, the City believed that Republic was being uncooperative in reaching an agreement with the City.”
It says TRP and Loop proposed buying out Republic’s interest in the venture, which was structured with Republic and Loop each owning 40 percent and TRP owning 20 percent. Republic said it would consider a buyout offer, the suit states, but when TRP and Loop made an offer this past April, TRP and Loop “then indicated that they did not have the resources to close on the purchase.”
The suit states that TRP, through the last half of last year, continued to lead negotiations with the city on behalf of the group “attempting to alter the City’s development agreement proposal,” and that TRP stopped updating Republic about the talks during that time.
People familiar with the events who requested anonymity to discuss them have told BizSense that Republic was no longer active on the project and has not participated in it since that time.
The suit states that, “Unbeknownst to Republic, Defendants formed a different partnership between themselves, known as Diamond District Partners, at the same time that the City and (RVA Diamond Partners), through Guillot and Thalhimer, were attempting to negotiate a development agreement.”
The suit describes the new agreement’s terms as “very different” and “far more favorable” to TRP and Loop than the previous agreement for RVA Diamond Partners. It notes that the bulk of the Diamond District Partners development team consists of firms from the first team, and states that TRP and Loop reused parts of the original group’s proposal that Republic had paid for or created.
A conceptual rendering of the Diamond District along Arthur Ashe Boulevard. (City documents)
According to the suit, RVA Diamond Partners incurred nearly $1 million in costs in pursuing the contract with the city, with Republic paying about $464,000 and $125,000 paid to Republic by Guillot. It says Loop has paid nothing to Republic and that nearly $400,000 remains owed to Republic. It seeks the due amount plus the $464,000 it has spent for a total of nearly $864,000, on top of the $40 million sought.
The suit alleges nine counts including breach of duty of loyalty, improper competition, improper exclusion from partnership, and usurpation of partnership opportunity. The latter count states that TRP and Loop “were charged with negotiating a development agreement on behalf of the Partnership” and that they instead “negotiated the development agreement for themselves.”
Republic is represented by Offit Kurman attorney Edward Tolchin, who declined to comment beyond the filing when reached Wednesday. Jordan Kramer, a principal with Republic who had been working on the project, also declined to comment.
Based in D.C., Republic Properties is a national developer whose mixed-use developments near the nation’s capital include Washington Harbour on the Georgetown waterfront, Georgetown Park, Market Square and The Portals. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Republic Projects LLC, an entity tied to parent company Republic Holdings Corp., which is headquartered in Connecticut.
In discussing its bid for the Diamond District in 2022, Kramer said Republic Properties assembled RVA Diamond Partners by first reaching out to TRP, a Richmond-based firm whose local projects include City View in Manchester, Westhampton Commons, the Regency mall redevelopment (with Rebkee) and the Novel Scott’s Addition apartments (with Crescent Communities) across Arthur Ashe Boulevard from The Diamond.
“We looked at a lot of local developers, and we found that TRP delivered a lot of great projects and they’re among the most successful in Richmond,” Kramer told BizSense at the time.
Republic previously owned at least one property in the Richmond area, the Millspring Commons apartments in Henrico, which it sold last year in a $34 million deal.
Loop Capital is a Chicago-based investment bank that’s been involved in the redevelopment of the Oakland Coliseum site in California and new terminals at LaGuardia Airport and JFK International Airport in New York.
It’s unclear whether Republic’s lawsuit could affect the start of the mixed-use portion of the Diamond District project. City officials have said the project would break ground this month and the new stadium will be completed in time for the 2026 baseball season.
The 67-acre Diamond District site is bordered by Arthur Ashe Boulevard, Hermitage Road, the interstate and the railroad tracks. (BizSense file)
Developers of Richmond’s Diamond District project have been thrown a legal curveball from one of their former partners in the form of a $40 million lawsuit.
Thalhimer Realty Partners and Loop Capital were sued last week by Republic Properties, which once led a previous iteration of the project’s development group.
The lawsuit filed in Richmond Circuit Court alleges that TRP and Loop breached their venture partnership with Republic when they formed a new entity and entered into a revised development agreement with the city. That new LLC, Diamond District Partners, includes TRP and Loop but not Republic.
Republic argues in the lawsuit that its former partners struck out on their own without first dissolving their partnership with Republic, which had assembled the previous group under its RVA Diamond Partners LLC.
The team change was made as the city pivoted its financing approach for the $2.4 billion project that includes a new baseball stadium to replace The Diamond. TRP and Loop, as Diamond District Partners, are now signed on to develop a 30-acre first phase of the 67-acre mixed-use development, while development of the anchor ballpark is being managed separately by the Richmond Flying Squirrels.
That arrangement is a change from the original development agreement with RVA Diamond Partners, which the city selected through a competitive solicitation process in 2022. The Republic-led team had reached terms with the city to develop the entire Diamond District project, including the new ballpark.
The lawsuit alleges that TRP negotiated the development agreement without involvement from Republic in violation of their venture partnership agreement. It says that the revised development agreement is based on documents that Republic paid for or created and that Republic maintains rights to the project through the still-active RVA Diamond Partners LLC.
Republic says it stands to lose $40 million in value from the project if TRP and Loop continue without it. It is seeking that amount from the suit’s defendants, which in addition to TRP and Loop include Diamond District Partners, TRP principal Jason Guillot, Loop CEO James Reynolds and two other Loop associates.
The City of Richmond is not a defendant in the suit.
Requests to TRP and Loop for comment on the suit were not returned Wednesday afternoon. Guillot, who has been leading the project locally, could not be reached Wednesday.
‘City believed that Republic was being uncooperative’
The 2023 development team selection was formally announced in a ceremony outside The Diamond. (BizSense file photo)
The suit stems from a lengthy negotiation process that resulted in the original development agreement, which City Council approved in May 2023, and continued over the past year as disagreements arose over the size and cost of the new stadium, currently planned for 10,000 seats and projected to cost over $110 million.
According to the suit, in the days leading up to council’s approval, city officials demanded that TRP be designated as RVA Diamond Partners’ lead representative in its dealings with the city, and that the group’s voting rights be structured “so that no one member would be in a position to preclude” RVA Diamond Partners from pursuing the project in accordance with the development agreement.
The suit states that the city made those demands “because, with Defendants’ encouragement, the City believed that Republic was being uncooperative in reaching an agreement with the City.”
It says TRP and Loop proposed buying out Republic’s interest in the venture, which was structured with Republic and Loop each owning 40 percent and TRP owning 20 percent. Republic said it would consider a buyout offer, the suit states, but when TRP and Loop made an offer this past April, TRP and Loop “then indicated that they did not have the resources to close on the purchase.”
The suit states that TRP, through the last half of last year, continued to lead negotiations with the city on behalf of the group “attempting to alter the City’s development agreement proposal,” and that TRP stopped updating Republic about the talks during that time.
People familiar with the events who requested anonymity to discuss them have told BizSense that Republic was no longer active on the project and has not participated in it since that time.
The suit states that, “Unbeknownst to Republic, Defendants formed a different partnership between themselves, known as Diamond District Partners, at the same time that the City and (RVA Diamond Partners), through Guillot and Thalhimer, were attempting to negotiate a development agreement.”
The suit describes the new agreement’s terms as “very different” and “far more favorable” to TRP and Loop than the previous agreement for RVA Diamond Partners. It notes that the bulk of the Diamond District Partners development team consists of firms from the first team, and states that TRP and Loop reused parts of the original group’s proposal that Republic had paid for or created.
A conceptual rendering of the Diamond District along Arthur Ashe Boulevard. (City documents)
According to the suit, RVA Diamond Partners incurred nearly $1 million in costs in pursuing the contract with the city, with Republic paying about $464,000 and $125,000 paid to Republic by Guillot. It says Loop has paid nothing to Republic and that nearly $400,000 remains owed to Republic. It seeks the due amount plus the $464,000 it has spent for a total of nearly $864,000, on top of the $40 million sought.
The suit alleges nine counts including breach of duty of loyalty, improper competition, improper exclusion from partnership, and usurpation of partnership opportunity. The latter count states that TRP and Loop “were charged with negotiating a development agreement on behalf of the Partnership” and that they instead “negotiated the development agreement for themselves.”
Republic is represented by Offit Kurman attorney Edward Tolchin, who declined to comment beyond the filing when reached Wednesday. Jordan Kramer, a principal with Republic who had been working on the project, also declined to comment.
Based in D.C., Republic Properties is a national developer whose mixed-use developments near the nation’s capital include Washington Harbour on the Georgetown waterfront, Georgetown Park, Market Square and The Portals. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Republic Projects LLC, an entity tied to parent company Republic Holdings Corp., which is headquartered in Connecticut.
In discussing its bid for the Diamond District in 2022, Kramer said Republic Properties assembled RVA Diamond Partners by first reaching out to TRP, a Richmond-based firm whose local projects include City View in Manchester, Westhampton Commons, the Regency mall redevelopment (with Rebkee) and the Novel Scott’s Addition apartments (with Crescent Communities) across Arthur Ashe Boulevard from The Diamond.
“We looked at a lot of local developers, and we found that TRP delivered a lot of great projects and they’re among the most successful in Richmond,” Kramer told BizSense at the time.
Republic previously owned at least one property in the Richmond area, the Millspring Commons apartments in Henrico, which it sold last year in a $34 million deal.
Loop Capital is a Chicago-based investment bank that’s been involved in the redevelopment of the Oakland Coliseum site in California and new terminals at LaGuardia Airport and JFK International Airport in New York.
It’s unclear whether Republic’s lawsuit could affect the start of the mixed-use portion of the Diamond District project. City officials have said the project would break ground this month and the new stadium will be completed in time for the 2026 baseball season.
And now the bickering starts………..
If only we were all rich so we could build this city ourselves.
And this is why we can’t have anything nice in Richmond.
This and politicians, yes.
Thalhimer has been a veritable monopoly in this town for quite awhile. High time a big player pushes back.
What a mess, I feel like the RFP should have included a timeline for progress milestones. The developers should have had to put up a $20M bond and if the timeline was not met, they forfeit the bond. Being ready for opening day in 2026 is not going to happen.
No news is good news, said Green City.
I hope they settle this in a hurry or we’re going to lose the AA baseball team, like we lost the AAA one.
I guess we can have a semi-pro pickle ball league at the site then.
“City officials have said the project would break ground this month…”
Ummm… today is July 25th, folks – which leaves basically four business days including today (no ground breaking will occur on the weekend) before this month is done.
What’s the over/under percent chance of ground-breaking this month actually happening? (My money is on zero.)
I swear – if I facepalm any harder I’ll give myself a concussion.
There’s a city infrastructure project that’s called the Jahnke Road Improvement Project that city officials have been telling the media will be finished in 2019, 2020, 2021 etc.. but it hasn’t even broken ground yet
Why am I not surprised? 🤔
Nutzy,Natasha,Zinger, y’all say bye,bye to all the nice people
Can you all please update the graphic to say Arthur Ashe, Jr., Blvd.?