New York City Opera Suitor Objects to Sale Delays

A New York City Opera creditor who has put in a bid to buy and resuscitate the shuttered company filed court papers Monday complaining about the opera board’s delays in considering his offer, Reuters reports.

Businessman Gene Kaufman made the undisclosed bid six months ago, three months after 70-year-old City Opera’s Chapter 11 filing. He called for an independent trustee to be put in charge of the bankruptcy process, saying the opera’s board is “stuck in neutral” and that the longer the company remains closed, the harder it will be to restart.

According to court papers, five proposals have been made for the opera. The board has twice been granted three-month extensions of the so-called exclusivity period for determining the organization’s future and has requested a third delay. An attorney for the opera said it is not unusual for debtors to seek multiple extensions.