CHARLESTON – A federal bankruptcy judge has delayed ruling on a motion that would open a 30-day bidding process for the purchase of the Charleston Gazette-Mail.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Frank Volk made the decision at a hearing Jan. 31 at the Robert C. Byrd United States Courthouse, saying all parties involved had not had enough time to review a motion outlining procedures related to submitting bids and the actual sale of the newspaper.
The hearing was to consider nine motions filed in the newspaper’s bankruptcy case and the other eight motions were approved.
Wheeling Newspapers currently is the highest bidder for the Gazette-Mail.
According to the Article 2 - Purchase Price in the bankruptcy documents filed in the case, the purchase price of the newspaper is $10.911 million.
Another hearing is scheduled for Feb. 7 to rule on the motion for the 30-day bidding process. A final hearing is scheduled for March 9.
The newspaper issued WARN notices to its employees on Jan. 29. However, the new owner could decide to maintain current employees.
In January, a federal judge upheld a $3.8 million arbitration ruling against the Charleston Gazette-Mail.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Johnston granted the petitioner’s petition to confirm the arbitrator’s award and denied the respondent’s motion to vacate the arbitrator’s award on Jan. 19.
The newspaper filed a motion to vacate the arbitrator’s award on Sept. 21 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.
MediaNews Group Inc. — the former owner of the Charleston Daily Mail — said it did not consent to the combination of Charleston’s two daily newspapers two years ago and that it is entitled to back-payments, plus payments of an annual management fee until the year 2024.
The company also claims www.dailymail.com was sold without consent.
Edward D. McDevitt, the arbitrator, ruled in MediaNews’ favor.
The Chilton family has owned a Charleston newspaper since 1907, when the family of Charleston politician, lawyer and business William E. Chilton bought the city’s Daily Gazette and renamed it the Charleston Gazette.
Chilton became publisher of the newspaper in 1917, after he lost his re-election bid to the U.S. Senate.
Chilton’s son, W.E. Chilton II, and grandson, W.E. “Ned” Chilton III, also served as publisher. Ned Chilton ran the paper from 1961 until his death in 1987.