MovieTowne POS complex seized

[zoom rader]

FB_IMG_1724458743465.jpg

Yeah... figured there would be an injunction and then a decision on the substantial case later on.

I believe PATT, POSINCO and the bailiffs can only act if they had a court order. It sounds like there wasn't one which means Chin about to make some money.

Well chin better make arrangements to pay him bills.


Is 1% treated the same way or do they hide behind closed doors to defer their payments?

[bluefete]

the way that bailiff was behaving was kinda grand charging

Much worse was the physical attack on the media by Chin's lackey security guards.

[pugboy]

i seen him pull up and park in ellerslie republic handicap parking more than once…

the way that bailiff was behaving was kinda grand charging

Much worse was the physical attack on the media by Chin's lackey security guards.

[zoom rader]

i seen him pull up and park in ellerslie republic handicap parking more than once…

the way that bailiff was behaving was kinda grand charging

Much worse was the physical attack on the media by Chin's lackey security guards.

There are no laws for parking in a handicap spot.

Banana Republic laws

[The_Honourable]

the way that bailiff was behaving was kinda grand charging

More than likely you're right.

On fb saw some comments from persons who had experience with this particular bailiff saying that he likes to intimidate and grand charge.

[The_Honourable]

FB_IMG_1724458743465.jpg

Yeah... figured there would be an injunction and then a decision on the substantial case later on.

I believe PATT, POSINCO and the bailiffs can only act if they had a court order. It sounds like there wasn't one which means Chin about to make some money.

Well chin better make arrangements to pay him bills.


Is 1% treated the same way or do they hide behind closed doors to defer their payments?

1% for the most part have their accountants to find loopholes to avoid, defer and/or pay lower taxes. Chin seems to be boldface not to pay BIR, who themselves was slack to allow his debt to reach 93M. He probably figured the tax system so archaic and under-resourced that he can hold out in different ways as long as possible. I read somewhere that a payment plan is now in place after the public embarrassment.

With the 10-11M debt to POSINCO, it started in 2021 so i'm guessing he was using Covid and other excuses as long as possible until they came down on him. As mentioned, they did it without a court order so POSINCO may have to pay Chin instead imo.

[Chimera]

FB_IMG_1724458743465.jpg

Yeah... figured there would be an injunction and then a decision on the substantial case later on.

I believe PATT, POSINCO and the bailiffs can only act if they had a court order. It sounds like there wasn't one which means Chin about to make some money.

Well chin better make arrangements to pay him bills.


Is 1% treated the same way or do they hide behind closed doors to defer their payments?

1% for the most part have their accountants to find loopholes to avoid, defer and/or pay lower taxes. Chin seems to be boldface not to pay BIR, who themselves was slack to allow his debt to reach 93M. He probably figured the tax system so archaic and under-resourced that he can hold out in different ways as long as possible. I read somewhere that a payment plan is now in place after the public embarrassment.

With the 10-11M debt to POSINCO, it started in 2021 so i'm guessing he was using Covid and other excuses as long as possible until they came down on him. As mentioned, they did it without a court order so POSINCO may have to pay Chin instead imo.

if he get put on a payment plan and could draw out that payment and invested all that money he didnt pay BIR all these years....then he come out realllll good

[pugboy]

to be a bailiff you have to have a lil bit of thug in you for sure to set the impression first or at least try

the way that bailiff was behaving was kinda grand charging

More than likely you're right.

On fb saw some comments from persons who had experience with this particular bailiff saying that he likes to intimidate and grand charge.

[Dizzy28]

Not much people know that Movietowne Guyana was also mired in some corruption allegations and the land deal was before investigation as part of a bigger scandal until the current Government won the elections and dropped everything.

Essentially the state lands were sold to Chin at a massive discount (in Guyanese dollars)

https://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2018 ... ith-fraud/

https://newsroom.gy/2018/06/13/investor ... -in-court/

[pugboy]

they must have gotten those lands under a sweet hand deal too

got the jump on the 1% early
suspect it was under kuei tung
around same time clico was given owp

there is no way a private entity getting lands so in the current environment without it passing on the 1% financiers plate first

[fokhan_96]

I'm trying to understand why Chin is not considered in the 1% ...? Is it a race thing ?

[MaxPower]

MT still have all them pests loitering?

[pugboy]

1% is not only about how much money you have
it’s more about how much puppet strings you controlling

I'm trying to understand why Chin is not considered in the 1% ...? Is it a race thing ?

[j.o.e]

I'm trying to understand why Chin is not considered in the 1% ...? Is it a race thing ?

You’re only 1% when it conveniently suits the political argument.

[zoom rader]

I'm trying to understand why Chin is not considered in the 1% ...? Is it a race thing ?

You’re only 1% when it conveniently suits the political argument.

1% are those that control the economy and the PNM while using black people conveniently.

[The_Honourable]

MovieTowne gets injunction against port

The High Court has issued an interim order against Port-of-Spain Infrastructure Company Limited, effectively barring the company from communicating with tenants of Trinbago Commercial Development Company Limited amidst a high-stakes legal dispute involving MovieTowne.

The order was granted by Madam Justice Donaldson-Honeywell on Friday, following an urgent application by the claimant. Trinbago Commercial Development Company Limited, which initiated the legal proceedings, sought immediate relief against the defendant, alleging that unauthorised communications were being made to tenants occupying buildings located on their property.

The disputed site, situated at Invaders Bay off the Audrey Jeffers Highway in Port-of-Spain, spans 9.9 acres (4.0236 hectares) and is central to the conflict between the two entities.

In her ruling, Justice Donaldson-Honeywell mandated that the defendant must refrain from any form of communication with the tenants concerning the buildings in question. This measure is intended to preserve the status quo until the matter is fully heard and determined.

The court further ordered that all relevant legal documents be promptly served to the defendant, ensuring transparency and adherence to procedural rules. The case has been scheduled for a virtual hearing tomorrow at 9, where the matter will be examined in greater detail.

The claimant, represented by JD Sellier and Company, has committed to covering any damages the defendant might suffer as a result of complying with the interim order.

MovieTowne offers PATT $1M towards $11M debt

Since May 2021, Trinbago Commercial Development Company Ltd (TCDC) (which owns MovieTowne, Port-of-Spain) has not paid any rent to the Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (PATT).

Last Monday, TCDC sent a cheque of $1 million towards accrued debt of $10,904,121.23.

Guardian Media understands that when the construction of MovieTowne was started in 2001, the rental agreement was for 1.5 cents a square foot, which worked out to $6,500 a month. The lease agreement allowed for a rate review every five years.

Five years later, in 2006, when the cineplex/mall was operational, it moved to $72,000 a month. By 2021, it was now valued at 65 cents a square foot, which worked out to a monthly rental rate of $283,000 a month. For comparison, one tenant, which has three separate businesses in MovieTowne, pays a monthly rental of $225,000 a month.

However, the Sunday Guardian was told that for the past three years, TCDC has not paid any rent on the new lease agreement as the company did not agree with the valuation.

Despite assertions by the company’s principal owner Derek Chin that the company was still recovering from COVID losses, the PATT waived all rent to the company because of COVID restrictions as it was a non-essential business.

According to a FOIA request by Freedom Law Chambers dated June 20, 2023, the PATT waived $3,825,000 in annual income from MovieTowne from the shopping mall and $16,875 a month ($202,500 annually) from the green park.

On Friday, the Port-of-Spain Infrastructure Company (POSINCO), the company that manages PATT’s real estate, exercised its right of re-entry and took possession of the premises leased to TCDC after the debt amounted to $10.9 million.

“This re-entry exercise was undertaken as a consequence of breaches of the terms and conditions of the existing Deed of Lease between POSINCO and TCDC,” it said in a press release on the matter.

The company said it had been in discussions with MovieTowne’s management “for several years regarding the said breaches in an effort to avoid (yesterday’s) outcome,” but it had not borne fruit.

For its part, TCDC described the move as the “high-handed, illegal and bullying actions of the Port Authority.”

The company stated, “TCDC has offered to settle all outstanding rental sums which are not in dispute and attempted to pay such sums by cheque. The cheque was returned notwithstanding current discussions to settle all matters, including disputed amounts.”

PATT chairman Lyle Alexander told Guardian Media on Friday the discussions bore no fruit and that POSINCO was now the landlord. The Sunday Guardian was told that the PATT would gladly allow TCDC to reclaim the property once outstanding sums had been cleared up, as they are not in the business of running malls or movies.

But MovieTowne isn’t just owing the PATT. In May, Guardian Media exclusively reported that the cinema complex owed the Board of Inland Revenue (BIR) $93 million in unpaid taxes and penalties, which spans 20 years.

MovieTowne is 21 years old.

“A payment plan was put in place,” Chin had told Guardian Media. MovieTowne has four cineplexes—three in T&T—in Port-of-Spain, Tobago and San Fernando, and one in Guyana. Chin is also looking to expand into Jamaica with the MovieTowne brand.

“Recently, we have been in talks with some people who are interested in us going to Jamaica. We would like to become the equivalent of Sandals. So, hopefully, we will go into Jamaica later this year,” he told the Business Guardian in an interview in November 2023.

He had said that the COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted businesses such as cinemas. In his interview, he lamented the difficulties of doing business in T&T. “We just created a beautiful dinosaur park, something that many countries would want to have. We gave Trinidad the first one in the Caribbean. The Customs and Excise Division decided to classify these moving gigantic exhibits as toys despite telling them they are not toys and are educational exhibits highlighting the Jurassic era. They continued to classify them as toys while any kindergarten kid will tell you otherwise,” he had said.

Chin, the Sunday Guardian was told, is out of the country addressing health matters.

https://www.guardian.co.tt/news/movieto ... 142c6e5463

[MaxPower]

Hope Chin recovers well.

Rest assured he is resting comfortably.

[pugboy]

rumor is he has some form of C
years now and goes for treatment abroad
recall he was caught outside during covid lockdown and had to charter a plane to come back

Hope Chin recovers well.

Rest assured he is resting comfortably.

[ed360123]

Chin to pay $3m as MovieTowne, landlord reach temporary agreement
https://newsday.co.tt/2024/08/27/chin-to-pay-3m-as-movietowne-landlord-reach-temporary-agreement/

[pugboy]

it’s an interesting case

if you rent a piece of land for a certain amount and the property you put up etc makes it more valuable
does it mean you have to pay the increased market rates which you caused ?

[zoom rader]

it’s an interesting case

if you rent a piece of land for a certain amount and the property you put up etc makes it more valuable
does it mean you have to pay the increased market rates which you caused ?

Demolish ur home and build a 10 million house, then have impsberts cronnies come and do revaluation on ur rental value.


I recently did a valuation on one of my properties, because i had planted just "fruit trees " and built a new fencing it shot up the valuation.

In Trinidad its best to look, act and think being poor.

I still wear my rubber slippers & short pants to my morning rum shop.

[ProtonPowder]

it’s an interesting case

if you rent a piece of land for a certain amount and the property you put up etc makes it more valuable
does it mean you have to pay the increased market rates which you caused ?

Land leases can have a fixed ground rent per year as is the case with NHA/HDC and Palmiste etc, or it can be subject to rent reviews as is the case with Woodbrook land owned by POSCC and others.

Depends entirely on the language used in the lease itself.

[The_Honourable]

MovieTowne obeys court order, pays $3m

MovieTowne’s leaseholder Trinbago Commercial Development Company Ltd (TCDC) has paid the $3 million the court ordered it to pay by the court in its ongoing legal battle against the Port of Spain Infrastructure Development Company (POSINCO).

On August 23, bailiffs took control of MovieTowne’s office and banquet hall as POSINCO claimed TCDC, a MovieTowne Holdings subsidiary company, owed $10,904,121.23 million in rent accumulated between May 2021 and August 2024.

TCDC however claimed that amount was inaccurate as it was based on a flawed valuation. MovieTowne multiplex, entertainment and commercial centre at Invaders Bay, Port of Spain, sits on land leased to TCDC by POSINCO.

The lease allowed for a rate review every five years and having started at $6,500, ballooned to more than $280,000 per month in 2021, and TCDC stopped making payments, as the dispute was being addressed.

At a virtual hearing on August 26, before Justice Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell, attorneys for TCDC and POSINCO thrashed out an agreement which will stay in place until the High Court determines the rent dispute between them.

According to the order, TCDC had until August 28 to pay $3 million and POSINCO was instructed to not disturb the occupation of MovieTowne’s tenants pending the outcome of the High Court matter.

MovieTowne director Ryan Chin confirmed the money was paid before Wednesday's deadline, adding, "Everything is still presently ongoing. Our legal side is still in communication with our tenants."

On August 27, MovieTowne wrote to its tenants asking them to pay all future rents to the company as usual. It said once the rent was paid, the tenants do not need to worry about any reprisal from the Port of Port of Spain.

In the letter, TCDC said the court order was based on the Port's undertaking not to disturb the occupation of the tenants, pending the hearing and determination of TCDC’s application for interim relief and reminded the tenants the dispute was between TCDC and the Port.

"The legal claim filed by TCDC seeks a declaration that the lease is subsisting. It is the court that will decide this issue, not the Port.”

TCDC said it would continue to discharge all its obligations to the tenants, including observing the covenants made to them as their landlord.

“We recognise there may be some uncertainty and anxiety concerning the actions of the Port and in particular the payment of rent...

"We confirm with you that once the rent is paid to TCDC in the usual way, this discharges your obligation completely for the rent that was due and you need not worry about any reprisal from the Port."

It said if PATT asked the tenants for rent, it was not obliged to pay and the company stood ready to protect its interest, the tenants' and the landlord/tenant relationship.

It said if PATT lawfully claimed rents in the future that were paid to TCDC, it would pay the tenants back.

"We have been advised by our attorneys that this undertaking is legally binding on TCDC.”

Asked by Newsday what would happen if tenants decided to pay the money to the court instead of TCDC or POSINCO, Chin said, "The last injunction (stated) we are the only ones having communications with our tenants, and they are also still our tenants. So, therefore, the status quo should remain the same at present."

He added the company was doing all it could to assuage tenants's concerns and remind them that MovieTowne, not POSINCO, was in control of the compound.

"We have advised them that based on the fact that we are still the landlords, that all of the communication from outside is not to be entertained. And that is being advising accordingly. We're just reassuring the client, the tenants of that and that's basically all I could say at this point in time."

Chin also addressed concerns raised by tenants about the upkeep of the compound.

Tenants have complained to Newsday of a lack of maintenance on the compound and accused MovieTowne's management of neglecting the mall.

"The escalators not working. We had to beg them to fix the toilet and certain enhancements were supposed to take place but they were never done. Even the tenant map has not been updated. Stores have closed down years now and they are still on the map,” said one tenant.

Chin, in response, said the company faced problems beyond its control regarding the replacement of the escalators, but added those issues were being addressed even before the court issue arose.

"Work has actually been going on even prior to all of this that has been happening this week and last week. A lot of those different things were being attended to prior to all of these developments."

https://newsday.co.tt/2024/08/29/moviet ... r-pays-3m/

[redmanjp]

Cineplex tenants ‘to pay rent to TCDC’

https://trinidadexpress.com/news/local/cineplex-tenants-to-pay-rent-to-tcdc/article_cc46215e-64ea-11ef-8697-f7312f810ead.html

[The_Honourable]

MovieTowne's Derek Chin explains how the company accrued $93 Million in unpaid taxes & the rent issue. His accountants did not inform him about his tax liabilities. He added that $60 Million of the 93 Million is from interest and penalties.

[sMASH]

Quite literally rich people problems

[The_Honourable]

Port Authority Chairman Lyle Alexander sets the record straight on the MovieTowne rent issue

[pugboy]

papers say kfc starbucks and subway oaying $225k rent
them must be collecting a good few million a month in rent