"We won a default judgment against them in New York and Pennsylvania for the full amount. We're still owed the full amount."
Moran's company is just one of many, court documents show.
"Every month since the promised check for services never arrived, we've been paying the printers, the sign maker, and others out of our own pockets after negotiating payment plans," he said.
The three developers continue to be unresponsive to requests for an interview to tell their side of the story.
Five years after CREI and its many affiliated companies appeared on the scene, only two projects - 101 Walnut and Nouveau at New Street near Second Street - have people living in them. The others never left the planning stages or ended up in sheriff's sale after the lenders foreclosed.
Lakhmna approached him about the job, Moran said. Co-op Branding, eager to get into the Philadelphia market, came down to see the plans and agreed to come down on its price to get a foothold here.
Co-Op worked for six months on "market research, brand strategy, the logo, the systems - tying everything together," he said. "The marketing plan focused on events rather than advertising to create attention for 101 Walnut. It was to be a unique approach. . . . "
The work included a high-end book at $250 a copy and a Web site that won Co-op an international award, Moran said. "To us, it seemed that we had a really great partnership."
Except that "the deadlines for production were insane," and CREI wasn't paying Co-op anything, forcing the firm to use its own funds to keep vendors willing to work.
In June 2007, "we have approvals from the developers, we're ready to go to press, and we asked them for a check," Moran said. "We're sent a PDF of the check, told that's how all CREI's vendors are paid, and that the real one was coming FedEx."
The book was printed. E-mails promised payment, but no checks arrived. Then, the e-mails stopped. Faced with bills and none of its $140,000, Co-op went to court in New York and obtained a judgment against CREI. The firm obtained one in Pennsylvania as well, but it did Moran no good.
"They set up 38 limited-liability partnerships and moved money from one to the next," he said. "The way to be paid is to break the corporate veil, but it's too costly to do. The court system completely failed us."
Contact real estate writer Alan J. Heavens at 215-854-2472 or aheavens@phillynews.com.
Inquirer real estate writer Alan J. Heavens is the author of "Remodeling on the Money" (Kaplan Publishing). His home-improvement columns appear Fridays in Home & Design.
