MARQUETTE — Marquette County officials are continuing to take legal action in recouping funds loaned to B3 Computers Inc. in October 2004.
At that time, the county received $360,000 in Community Development Block Grant funding from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation that was loaned to B3 Computers. The company, which was located at K.I. Sawyer, was to use the funds for purchasing inventory and working capital. The loan was later amended by an additional $30,000. The loan period was supposed to be from October 2004 to October 2011.
B3 moved to Sawyer from California in 2004 and leased a building owned by the Marquette County EDC, promising to eventually hire more than 100 employees. While at Sawyer, B3 tried to develop a business providing small and medium-sized computer resellers with an Internet retail Web site to compete with large direct sellers like Dell and Gateway.
By July 2006, the company abandoned the building after it defaulted on three loans and the rent and utility owed to the county EDC. In November 2006, B3’s CEO William Carr filed for personal bankruptcy, saying his personal assets were gone.
B3 owes $230,080 of a $250,000 loan from the Intermediary Relending Program administered by the county, $81,145 of a $100,000 loan from the county EDC, $350,000 of the $390,000 loan from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s CDBG funds, and $57,898 in rent and utilities to the county EDC.
In November 2006, the Marquette County Board voted unanimously to work with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, the state of Michigan and the Marquette County EDC to recover funds owed by B3.
County Administrator Steve Powers said they are continuing with efforts to collect the debts B3 owes.
The Marquette County Board will hold a public hearing to close out the loans before its Committee of the Whole meeting at 6 p.m. today. The public hearing is standard protocol to close out loans from CDGB funds and is not directly related to the legal action the county is taking against B3 Computers, Powers said.
“This doesn’t mean we’re going to stop trying to recoup these funds,” he said. “We have taken legal action to do that. The chances of repayment are remote, however.”
