Commerce Tower, the 11-story building at Noble Street and Alabama 202, is in foreclosure, (Photo by Bill Wilson/The Anniston Star)
According to a legal notice published Saturday, the building’s owner, Commerce Tower LLC, recently defaulted on a loan from Regions Bank. An attorney representing Regions said that was still the case Monday afternoon.
The property is set to be auctioned off on Jan. 7 at the Calhoun County Courthouse.
Corporate records from the Secretary of State’s office link Commerce Tower to Anniston eye doctor Kent Keys, who purchased the building along with James Lloyd in 1999.
The Star’s efforts to reach Keys on Monday were unsuccessful. Lloyd, who now manages the leasing of the tower, said he was unaware of the foreclosure.
In an interview with The Star last week, Lloyd described the local market for downtown office space as “terrible.”
Lloyd said that since the county office of the state Department of Human Resources moved from the Commerce Tower earlier this fall, eight of the building’s 11 floors have been left vacant.
Lloyd, who also manages the property for the Watermark Tower two blocks north, said the problems in the downtown market are similar to real estate markets throughout the nation, with a glut of properties and few interested buyers.
The Commerce Tower was built in 1990 and originally named the Williamson Commerce Center, after Anniston businessman Joe Williamson, president of Williamson Oil Co.
Assistant Metro Editor Daniel Gaddy: 256-235-3562. On Twitter @DGaddy_Star.
