TEXAS TOWNSHIP -- The owner of a power sports dealership in Wayne County is vowing to stay in business even though the bank foreclosed on his massive property.
The huge facility is scheduled for sheriff's sale in a couple of months.
Rusty Palmer's on Route 6 near Honesdale stands out. It's as long as a football field if not longer and the property has been for sale for $8 million.
Now, court papers show the owners couldn't pay the mortgage and the bank foreclosed. Rusty Palmer, a self-made man, said somehow, someway he'll stay in business.
While Palmer fed the Koi fish in his indoor pond at the dealership and restaurant near Honesdale Wednesday, time ticked away to an impending sheriff's sale of the more than 100,000 square foot building and the property around it.
Without a buyer for the huge facility along Route 6, Palmer failed to keep up with his mortgage payments and owes a little more than $7 million. Court papers show the bank is even going after more of his property that was put up as collateral, roughly another $5 million.
"Well, we've got a little issue going on now, it's nothing drastic," said Palmer.
Palmer has sold ATVs, jet skis and more for decades and employs several dozen people. Now he vows it won't come to a sheriff's sale in September.
"You'll never see that happen, as far as with Rusty, because Rusty is not going bankrupt," he said.
Back in 2005, Rusty Palmer's burned to the ground on Route 6 near Honesdale, so he rebuilt down the road in the biggest of ways, even putting a log cabin on the place for seemingly no reason at all.
"The economy's changed, industry's changed so much, we're making those changes," said employee Nick Fylstra.
Palmer has enough property to sell to make sure he can stay afloat he said. He also claims business has rebounded since the recession.
But without a buyer for the property and creditors looking to collect, Palmer admits longtime customers are worried about the future of the business that started nearly 50 years ago.
"It's been tough, but 99 percent of the people come back because they know I've been here since '68 and I'm not about to leave."
Palmer plans to downsize and keep on doing business despite the sheriff's sale slated for September.
