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On the eve of foreclosure, Plaza Mariachi filed for bankruptcy.
As of Monday morning, David Anthony, the trustee for the sale, confirmed to the Nashville Banner that the foreclosure was set to go forward as scheduled on Tuesday at 11 a.m. The only things that could have delayed those proceedings were if current owner Mark Janbakhsh somehow found a way to pay off the venue’s debt or to file bankruptcy.
Anthony confirmed to the Banner that the bankruptcy filing will prevent the scheduled foreclosure, and he will instead be announcing a 60-day continuance of the sale. But he clarified that the announcement is an administrative safeguard for the unlikely scenario that the bankruptcy is quickly dismissed.
In other words, foreclosure is unlikely any time soon.
South Nashville Latino culture hub's property owner has seen federal fraud charges
So far, Plaza Mariachi has filed only the bare minimum paperwork needed to kickstart bankruptcy proceedings, so a full list of debts and other information is not yet available.
Janbakhsh first bought the building, formerly a Kroger, for $1.9 million in 2013, and transformed the Nolensville Pike location into a beloved institution and center for Latino culture and commerce.
Despite the success of the cultural hub, Janbakhsh has run into myriad legal problems over the past few years.
Janbakhsh was the majority owner and CEO of the Tennessee car dealership chain Auto Masters. He and Steven Piper, the CFO, allegedly defrauded banks for millions of dollars, some of which went toward the development of Plaza Mariachi. Janbakhsh was indicted on 18 counts of fraud in 2022 and was set to go on trial in June. That date was recently postponed, and has not been rescheduled.
Janbakhsh took out $11 million in loans from First Financial Bank throughout the development of Plaza Mariachi. Those loans had an original maturity date of Jan. 28, 2023. In early June, First Financial Bank set forth foreclosure proceedings.
The Banner reached out to Janbakhsh through his bankruptcy lawyer but did not receive comment in time for publication.
