Santa Rosa electric tractor maker Solectrac evicted from 1 location, owing $65,000 in rent
The Sonoma County-based electric tractor company undergoing a major reorganization was evicted from its Santa Rosa location and owes $65,223 in back rent, the property owners say.
Solectrac left the commercial property owned by mother and son, Barbara and Jeff Smyth, by the eviction date, March 20. The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Civil Division posted a sign the week prior on the door of the 8,000-square-foot research and development center at 3663 Regional Parkway in north Santa Rosa. The Smyths won a judgment in Sonoma County Superior Court, allowing them to take possession of the premises.
“They left a ton of property. We’re nowhere near being able to rent that out,” Jeff Smyth said, listing oil drums as part of the equipment left behind.
The Smyths will need to clean up the facility and auction off the Solectrac belongings. Proceeds from the auction will pay for the equivalent of one month’s back rent to the Smyths. The remainder goes to the county. No auction date has been set yet.
“With no responses from the tenant to our inquiries for payment over several months, we had to resort to legal action to obtain back possession of the building,” Jeff Smyth said. “I think they got tied to a corporation and couldn’t keep up.”
Collecting rent due of $10,872 per month requires a separate court filing. His attorneys, Ron Dering and Bill Hatcher, concurred.
The Smyths have been dealing with Solectrac financial managers Harihan Viswanathan and David Williams, who are named parties in the filings. It’s unclear whether they still represent the company since New York-based Ideanomics owns Solectrac and reduced the workforce, including founder Steve Heckeroth, who provided no additional comment.
Ideanomics Chief Operating Officer Robin Mackie had also not responded to questions. Viswanathan and Williams were named parties in the civil action.
The global alternative energy technology company bought the North Coast startup from Heckeroth for over $20 million a few years ago, after providing $2.6 million in investment funding. In May 2019, the climate activist incorporated Solectrac in Mendocino County with $900,000 in seed money.
The public parent company, with its stock hovering around $1 a share, just announced a reorganization that eliminates the dealer network it established two years ago in favor of direct-to-consumer sales of the tractors, which cost an average of $30,000.
Mackie had earlier called the Solectrac company situation “a mess,” adding it continues to operate at 5600 Earhart Court in Windsor. That commercial property is listed in the Sonoma County Assessor’s Office as owned by 1145 Kittyhawk Blvd. LLC. According to the California Secretary of State’s Office, the property is owned by an affiliate of the DenBeste family in Windsor.
Susan Wood covers law, cannabis, production, transportation, agriculture as well as banking and finance. She can be reached at 530-545-8662 or susan.wood@busjrnl.com
