Millender cleared of wrongdoing in Porthaven trial

Even before Arkansas jurors decided whether fraud surrounded the now-defunct Porthaven project in the heart of Eastpoint, the plaintiffs decided Bruce Millender, one of the key creators of the mixed-use development, shouldn’t even be one of the accused.

And then, a week later, the jury decided none of the defendants were guilty of securities fraud, common law fraud and deceit, or civil conspiracy.

A little more than two years after disgruntled investors from in and around Fayetteville, Arkansas went to federal court to allege they were misled by the project’s developers, the former Eastpoint seafood dealer was cleared of any involvement in wrongdoing.

On July 29, the third day of the jury trial in the U.S. District Court of Western Arkansas, Millender was dismissed from the suit, both as an individual and on behalf of Heritage Coast Properties, LLC. Millender and his company were instrumental in spring 2005 of knitting together several properties into a 16.92-acre aggregated parcel, which was then sold to Porthaven’s developers for $19 million, $14 million of which was financed through Chambers Bank.

The suit alleged several of the developers, including Dirk Van Veen, who served as the face of the project before the county commission, as well as Chambers Bank and one of its employees, all conspired to deceive investors into putting money in the Porthaven project.

“This dismissal is a complete vindication for Bruce Millender who, through Heritage Coast Properties, LLC, had sold the involved Eastpoint properties to an Arkansas-based entity headed by Growth Group, LLC,” said Eastpoint attorney Nick Yonclas, who handled the case along with Tallahassee attorney Ethan Andrew Way, who advanced a spirited defense in Millender’s behalf.

“There was absolutely no finding of wrongdoing against Mr. Millender, and he did not settle for any terms,” said Yonclas.

On Aug. 6, the remaining defendants, plus Chambers Bank and J. R. Meeks, a bank employee and the nephew of the Chambers Bank CEO Johnny Chambers, were all cleared of the civil charges.

Yonclas said several other defendants were dismissed by the plaintiffs before trial, and Group Growth, LLC, and its principal member, Mitchell Massey, had filed bankruptcy.

Had the Porthaven project come to fruition, the multi-million dollar mixed-use project would have radically transformed the heart of Eastpoint.

After purchasing the core acreage of nearly 17 acres, the developers added additional land, and expanded the project’s scope by March 2007, when Miami architectural firm Duany Plater-Zyberk and Company conducted a week-long charrette in Apalachicola to brainstorm ideas.

Their designs resulted in a project encompassing 311 units on 31.09 acres, and after a hotly-debated vote, county agreed to transmit to the Florida Department of Community Affairs a change in the comprehensive plan that would have allowed Growth Group to  create densities as high as 10 units per acre for Porthaven.

The developers had sought 11.3 units per acre, or about 350 units, on the proposed site, which runs from just west of First Street to east of Second Street, and north from the water to just south and directly east of Russell Street.

The housing bubble took its toll on the project, and in Dec. 2008, following foreclosure proceedings, Circuit Judge James Hankinson ordered the 31-acre parcel sold to the highest bidder on the courthouse steps.

The notice of sale followed a ruling that awarded the Chambers Bank a default judgment of nearly $14.5 million against Eastpoint Redevelopment LLC, which was managed by Growth Group and included several of the disgruntled private investors.

With the fall of the project Millender lost a portion of his initial proceeds from the sale of the parcels, which he had reinvested in Porthaven.

Millender said last week he no longer has a financial interest in the land, with Chambers Bank now in possession of the acreage. In addition, he is no longer operating Seaquest seafood, which had been in business on the property during the foreclosure.

Still, Millender said he believe strongly that development is coming to Eastpoint, which he said sorely needs the boost.

“I would like to see something done, to have a good correlation with the seafood industry, that would bring tourists in and bring jobs, to our kids and grandkids,” he said. “I want to see something good for Eastpoint. Apalachicola has their one thing going, I’d like to see something happen good in Eastpoint.”

“We need it, we need it bad,” he said. “We need some jobs and clean industry. We’ve got a beautiful waterfront. We need to be able to put something there that has a clean correlation to seafood.”

As for the lawsuit, Millender said he was relieved. “Everything went well,” he said. “It was a frivolous case to start with it. It never had merit.”