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Last year Creative Loafing Inc. of Tampa, Florida, bought the Reader and our sister paper, D.C.’s Washington City Paper. Two months ago, CLI, which borrowed $40 million to make the deal, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to reorganize. Earlier this month, CLI asked the bankruptcy court for permission to hire Skyway Capital Partners as “financial advisors.” Skyway’s president, Brian Crino, is a former Chicagoan who played a central role in pulling together the financing that made the 2007 purchase happen.
The Atalaya brief also questions Skyway’s competence: “Skyway Capital advised the Debtors [CLI] in connection with the 2007 acquisition of the Chicago and Washington, DC newspaper operations. Less than two years later, the value of the combined operations of the Debtors is less than the sales price.”
