Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher is providing PR counsel to a deal reached this week to rescue minor league baseball's Memphis Redbirds, the St. Louis Cardinals farm affiliate which defaulted on millions in tax-exempt bonds in 2009.
Joele Frank private equity client Fundamental Advisors bought up the bond debt of the team and its $80M ballpark, AutoZone Park, in 2010. FA, along with the not-for-profit that runs the team, the Memphis Redbirds Baseball Foundation, announced a deal this week for the Cardinals to acquire the team, while the City of Memphis acquires the stadium.
New York-based FA, a specialist in distressed municipal bond-backed assets, has agreed to retire the original bonds and take a hit on the original principal amount.
"The time is right to turn the stadium back over to the great city of Memphis, and to leave the team in the hands of the world-class St. Louis Cardinals organization," FA CEO Laurence Gottlieb said via Joele Frank. "We will be cheering from the sidelines."
The Memphis City Council will consider the deal on Dec. 3.
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