The two Sneakers Sports Grille restaurants in the Jacksonville area have filed separate Chapter 11 bankruptcy petitions in the past month, but are working to reorganize their debts as they continue to operate.
Sneakers Jax Beach LLC filed for Chapter 11 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Jacksonville on Jan. 31 and also filed its reorganization plan the same day. The Chapter 11 petition listed $1.88 million in assets and $2.18 million in debts for the restaurant at the intersection of Beach Boulevard and First Street in Jacksonville Beach.
Meanwhile, Sneakers Sports Grille Point Meadows Inc., which operates the restaurant at 8133 Point Meadows Dr., filed its Chapter 11 petition on Feb. 18. It listed assets of $2.94 million and debts of $5.25 million.
The Point Meadows restaurant, near the intersection of Baymeadows Road and I-295, has not yet filed a reorganization plan. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Jerry Funk did issue an order Wednesday allowing the restaurant to continue in operation as it goes through Chapter 11.
The Point Meadows bankruptcy petition lists Nicholas Pratt as the 40 percent owner of the company and his wife Susan as the owner of the other 60 percent.
The disclosure statement filed for the Jacksonville Beach restaurant lists Gregory Pratt as the sole owner. Gregory Pratt is Nicholas’ brother and the founder of the Sneakers concept.
Brett Mearkle, the attorney representing both restaurants, said there will be no changes in operations because of the Chapter 11 filings.
“It’s just that the debt structure needs to be changed,” he said.
The disclosure statement says the Jacksonville Beach restaurant, which opened in 2001, got a $1 million loan to fund technology and capital improvements in 2007 and 2008. But then the recession hurt business.
“However, through cost cutting measures implemented by the debtor’s management over the last three years, the debtor has been able to meet its ordinary course business obligations as those obligations have come due since the recession began. It has not been until recently, when the City of Jacksonville Beach began road construction improvements directly in front of the restaurant, that foot traffic to the restaurant has declined significantly,” the disclosure statement said.
First Guaranty Bank & Trust Co., which made the loans to the Sneakers restaurants, was recently taken over by CenterState Bank of Florida. But Mearkle said CenterState is working with the restaurants on their plans to restructure the debts.
Mearkle said the Point Meadows restaurant expects to file its restructuring plan in the next few days.
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