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Following the startling announcement on Monday that Window Media had filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, with properties including the Washington Blade facing certain liquidation, a northern Virginia newspaper owner has stepped forward with an account of his eleventh-hour attempt to save the venerable D.C.-based gay publication.
"I contacted the SBA and they seemed to be willing to entertain an offer to spin free the assets of the Blade from the liquidation process," said Benton, the owner of Benton Communications Inc., which is certified as an LGBT business enterprise by the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.
The offer from Benton ultimately included cash (he declined to disclose the amount), an assertion against the assumption of any debt and liability, and an understanding that the Blade would continue to be published through the transitional period.
"I didn't see getting rich out of the deal," Benton said. "But I did see perpetuating the legacy and keeping people in their jobs and serving the community regionally, locally, and nationally."
The SBA apparently favored the idea too. In September, Benton learned that the agency had accepted his offer, one of a few bids that existed, he recalled.
"We had a conference call that said, 'You win,'" he
said. "The attitude at the time was, 'How can we get this done?' There
was essentially agreement on the broader parameters."
As October
wore on, Benton said, his lawyer attempted to iron out the
specifics of the purchase and sale agreement. The attorney expected
that Window Media would first file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with a
separate agreement worked out to rescue the Blade before
liquidation of other properties began. But according to Benton, Window
Media copresident and chief financial officer Steve Myers said that
some "very minor things" remained before he could close the deal.
"We never actually would up seeing what those 'minor things' were," Benton said.
On
Monday, Benton learned along with the public that the SBA had shuttered
all publications owned by Avalon through Window Media and its sibling
entity, Unite Media. SBA spokesman Mike Kamler told Keen News Service on
Monday that it wasn't his organization's decision to shut down the
newspapers and that it had "solicited offers for some potential new
owners to take over the Blade and forwarded those offers" to Window
Media.
Window Media executives have not returned calls from The Advocate requesting comment.
