ORGANIZATION |
9 Months Ended |
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Sep. 30, 2021 | |
| Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract] | |
| ORGANIZATION | ORGANIZATION On May 15, 2020, Old Copper Company, Inc. (f/k/a J. C. Penney Company, Inc.) (“Old Copper”) and certain of its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Debtors”) commenced voluntary cases under chapter 11 of title 11 of the United States Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”) in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas (the “Bankruptcy Court”).
On October 28, 2020, the Debtors entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement (the “Asset Purchase Agreement”) with Copper Retail JV LLC, an entity formed by and under the joint control of Simon Property Group, L.P. and Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (“OpCo Purchaser”), and Copper Bidco LLC (“PropCo Purchaser” and, together with OpCo Purchaser, the “Purchasers”), an entity formed on behalf of lenders under Old Copper’s (i) senior secured superpriority, priming debtor-in-possession credit facility (the “DIP Facility”), (ii) 5.875% senior secured notes due 2023 (the “First Lien Notes”) and (iii) Amended and Restated Credit and Guaranty Agreement, dated as of June 23, 2016 (the “Term Loan Facility” and together with the First Lien Notes, the “First Lien Debt”), pursuant to which the Purchasers agreed to acquire substantially all of the Debtors’ assets and assume certain of the Debtors’ obligations in connection with the purchased assets.
On December 12, 2020, the Debtors filed the Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization of J. C. Penney Company, Inc. and its Debtor Affiliates (the “Plan of Reorganization”) which was confirmed by the Bankruptcy Court on December 16, 2020.
On December 21, 2020, Copper Property CTL Pass Through Trust, a New York common law trust (the “Trust,” “we,” “our” or “us”) was formed in connection with the reorganization of Old Copper.
On January 30, 2021 (the “Effective Date”), the Plan of Reorganization became effective pursuant to its terms, at which point PropCo Purchaser (replacing Old Copper) and GLAS Trust Company, LLC, continuing as trustee, entered into an Amended and Restated Trust Agreement (as amended, the “Trust Agreement”). In connection with the consummation of the transactions set forth in the Asset Purchase Agreement and in exchange for a $1 billion aggregate credit bid by PropCo Purchaser, comprising $900 million of claims under the DIP Facility and $100 million of claims, on a pro rata basis, under the First Lien Debt, and simultaneous release of obligations under the DIP Facility and First Lien Debt, Old Copper transferred (or caused its subsidiaries to transfer) its fee simple or ground leasehold title (as applicable) in certain properties to the PropCos (as defined below) and assigned (or caused such subsidiaries to assign) the Master Leases (as defined below) relating to the properties to the Trust. As a result, as of the Effective Date, the Trust owned, through separate wholly-owned property holding companies (the “PropCo”), 160 Retail Properties and six Warehouses (each as defined below), all of which are leased to one or more subsidiaries of OpCo Purchaser (collectively with its subsidiaries, “New JCP”) under two Master Leases. In connection with the foregoing, certain of the Debtors' lenders received, their pro-rata portion of the equity interest in the Trust, as evidenced by the Trust Certificates (as defined below). The aggregate credit bid was not an indicator of the fair value of the assets and liabilities of the Trust as of the Effective Date, and it does not represent the full extent of debt that was owed to the creditor group.
The Trust accounted for the reorganization using fresh start accounting under Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standard Codification ("ASC") Topic 852, which resulted in the Trust becoming a new entity for financial reporting purposes on the Effective Date. Accordingly, all assets and liabilities are recorded at fair value in accordance with accounting requirements for business combinations under ASC 805-20.
As of the Effective Date, Old Copper has no ability to exercise any control over the Properties or the Trust and has no affiliation with the Trust. The Trust owns directly or indirectly 100% of the equity or partnership interests (as applicable) in the PropCos. Specifically, the PropCos include (i) CTL Propco I LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, and CTL Propco I L.P., a Delaware limited partnership, which collectively own the fee simple or ground leasehold title (as applicable) to the Retail Properties and (ii) CTL Propco II LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, and CTL Propco II L.P., a Delaware limited partnership, which collectively own the fee simple title to the Warehouses.
The Trust’s operations consist solely of (i) owning the Properties, (ii) leasing the Properties under the terms of the Master Leases (as discussed in Note 4), to New JCP as the sole tenants and (iii) subject to market conditions and the conditions set forth in the Trust Agreement, selling the Properties to third-party purchasers in each case through the PropCos.
As of September 30, 2021, the real estate portfolio consists of 155 retail properties (the “Retail Properties”) and six distribution centers (the “Warehouses” and, together with the Retail Properties, the “Properties”) across 37 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. In the aggregate, the Warehouses and Retail Properties comprise 10.1 million square feet and 20.7 million square feet, respectively, of leasable space, all of which is leased to the tenants under the Master Leases (as discussed in Note 4).
The Trust is governed by the Trust Agreement between PropCo Purchaser and the Trustee. The Trust Agreement created a series of equity trust certificates designated as “Copper Property CTL Pass Through Certificates” (the “Trust Certificates”), 75 million of which were issued on the Effective Date. Each Trust Certificate represents a fractional undivided beneficial interest in the Trust and represents the interests of the holders of the Trust Certificates (“Certificateholders”) in the Trust. All Trust Certificateholders shall vote as a single class and shall be in all respects equally and ratably entitled to the benefits of the Trust Agreement without preference, priority or distinction on account of the actual time or times of authentication and delivery, all in accordance with the terms and provisions of the Trust Agreement.
On May 12, 2021, the Trust filed a preliminary proxy statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, to solicit consent from Certificateholders to amend the Trust Agreement and Management Agreement. On June 11, 2021, following the expiration of the consent solicitation and upon receipt of the requisite approval from the Certificateholders, the Trust amended the Trust Agreement and the Management Agreement to effectuate the proposed amendments. The Trust is required to dispose of all Retail Properties by July 31, 2025.
GLAS Trust Company, LLC serves as the Trust's independent third-party trustee (the "Trustee") and performs trust administration duties, including treasury management and certificate administration. The Trust paid the Trustee an annual service fee of $100, which is being amortized monthly. The Trust incurred trustee fees of $27 in the three months ended September 30, 2021 and $78 from the Effective Date to September 30, 2021, which are included in “General and administrative expenses” on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
The Trust has retained Hilco JCP LLC, an affiliate of Hilco Real Estate LLC, as its independent third-party manager to perform asset management duties with respect to the Properties (together with any of its affiliates, replacement or successor, the “Manager”). The Trust pays the Manager a base management fee (the “Base Fee”) and a fee for each property sold (the “Asset Management Fee”). The Base Fee is an amount equal to the greater of 5.75% of the lease payments of the Properties per month and $333 per month. The Asset Management Fees consist of a closing fee of $50 for each Warehouse sold and a success fee for both Retail Properties and Warehouses sold which varies based on the sales proceeds and date sold. The Trust incurred Base Fees of $2,225 in the three months ended September 30, 2021 and $5,977 from the Effective Date to September 30, 2021, which are included in “Operating expenses” on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations of which $738 was included in “Accounts payable and accrued expenses” on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets as of September 30, 2021. The Trust incurred Asset Management Fees of $869 for the three months ended September 30, 2021 and $869 from the Effective Date to September 30, 2021 which are included in “Gain on sales of investment properties, net” on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
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