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The owners of Indian Springs Vineyards in Penn Valley are negotiating with an unidentified party to either sell assets or form a joint venture to save the debt-laden winery.
The disclosure is contained in an application filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Sacramento, where the winery is asking for an extension of the 120 days the company has to file a reorganization plan.
For Indian Springs, which sought protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code on June 15, the deadline was Oct. 13.
In the application filed Oct. 13, attorney Mike Nakagawa of Sacramento requested a 16-day extension while winery general partner Dennis W. Ball completed negotiations that "will be a significant component for the proposed plan of reorganization."
Nakagawa said negotiations were supposed to end Oct. 8 but were extended to Oct. 19. Indian Springs asked that the deadline for filing its reorganization plan be extended to Oct. 29.
With the concurrence of both parties, Judge Christopher M. Klein set a hearing for Nov. 2.
The application didn't specify if the current negotiations involve all or part of the winery. The court gave the winery permission in July to sell an unspecified amount of property after Ball stated in a declaration that a sale "would be in the best interest of creditors."
Ball declined comment Tuesday.
A company seeking bankruptcy protection has 120 days from the date of the filing to propose a reorganization plan. If it fails to meet the deadline, the company's creditors - in this case, PremierWest Bank of Oregon and TransAmerica Life Insurance Co. - can propose their own plan.
Indian Springs, believed to be the largest winery in Nevada County, owes PremierWest $4 million and TransAmerica $4,250,000.
Klein also resolved an ongoing dispute by ordering Winery Asset Management Inc. to pay $425,000 it owes Indian Springs. The winery was ordered to place the money in a separate account and was barred from spending any of the money without the written consent of its creditors.
Indian Springs had sought permission to use the money to finance ongoing operations, a move opposed by the winery's creditors.
Meanwhile, the winery continues to leak money. In a report filed with the court Oct. 13, Indian Springs reported that disbursements exceeded receipts by $145,240 in September. That was down slightly from the $158,721 deficit reported for August.
The disclosure is contained in an application filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Sacramento, where the winery is asking for an extension of the 120 days the company has to file a reorganization plan.
For Indian Springs, which sought protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code on June 15, the deadline was Oct. 13.
In the application filed Oct. 13, attorney Mike Nakagawa of Sacramento requested a 16-day extension while winery general partner Dennis W. Ball completed negotiations that "will be a significant component for the proposed plan of reorganization."
Nakagawa said negotiations were supposed to end Oct. 8 but were extended to Oct. 19. Indian Springs asked that the deadline for filing its reorganization plan be extended to Oct. 29.
With the concurrence of both parties, Judge Christopher M. Klein set a hearing for Nov. 2.
The application didn't specify if the current negotiations involve all or part of the winery. The court gave the winery permission in July to sell an unspecified amount of property after Ball stated in a declaration that a sale "would be in the best interest of creditors."
Ball declined comment Tuesday.
A company seeking bankruptcy protection has 120 days from the date of the filing to propose a reorganization plan. If it fails to meet the deadline, the company's creditors - in this case, PremierWest Bank of Oregon and TransAmerica Life Insurance Co. - can propose their own plan.
Indian Springs, believed to be the largest winery in Nevada County, owes PremierWest $4 million and TransAmerica $4,250,000.
Klein also resolved an ongoing dispute by ordering Winery Asset Management Inc. to pay $425,000 it owes Indian Springs. The winery was ordered to place the money in a separate account and was barred from spending any of the money without the written consent of its creditors.
Indian Springs had sought permission to use the money to finance ongoing operations, a move opposed by the winery's creditors.
Meanwhile, the winery continues to leak money. In a report filed with the court Oct. 13, Indian Springs reported that disbursements exceeded receipts by $145,240 in September. That was down slightly from the $158,721 deficit reported for August.
