paul guzzardo deposition transcript
DESCRIPTION
Deposition of Paul Guzzardo taken on 6/27/2012. Paul Guzzardo vs. Grand Center, Inc.TRANSCRIPT
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1 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF ST LOUIS
2 STATE OF MISSOURI
3
4
5
6
7 PAUL GUZZARDO
8 vs
9 GRAND CENTER INC ET AL
10
11 Case No 0922-CC01036
12
13
14
15
16 DEPOSITION OF PAUL GUZZARDO
17
18 TAKEN ON BEHALF OF THE DEFENDANT
19 JUNE 27 2012
20
21
22
23
24
25
1 INDEX PAGE NO 2 INDEX PAGE 2 DEPOSITION INFORMATION 3 3 APPEARANCE PAGE 4 DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MS LUBBEN 5 4 NOTARIAL CERTIFICATE 238 TAX PAGE 239 5 EXHIBITS 6 DEFENDANT EXHIBIT NO DESCRIPTION PAGE NO 7 A Exclusive Representation 58 Agreement 8 B 8/19/2003 Friedman Letter 67
9 C 9/5/03 Guzzardo Letter 72
10 D Option Contract 77
11 E Folder B Graphics 92
12 F Documents Related to Financial 107
13 Feasibility
14 G 3/23/04 Emails & Attached Memo 113
15 H 3/23/04 Memo 115
16 I First Quarterly Report 117
17 J Jake Wagman Article 155
18 K 1/20/05 Friedman Email 156
19 L Series of Emails 158
20 M 1/31/05 Newman Email 168
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21 N Projection Project Emails 178
22 O Petition 181
23 P The Light Project Materials 192
24 Q Logic Systems Invoice 200
25 R Guzzardo Lectures 231
1 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF ST LOUIS STATE OF MISSOURI 2 PAUL GUZZARDO ) 3 )
4 Plaintiff )
5 )
6 vs ) Case No 0922-CC01036
7 )
8 GRAND CENTER INC ET )
9 AL )
10 )
11 Defendants )
12
13 DEPOSITION OF PAUL GUZZARDO produced sworn
14 and examined on JUNE 27 2012 between the hours of
15 9 00 in the forenoon and 4 15 in the afternoon of that
16 day at the offices of CALLIS PAPA HALE SZEWCZYK &
17 DANZINGER P C 1326 Niedringhaus Avenue Granite
18 City Illinois 62040 before Susannah L Walmsley a
19 Registered Professional Reporter Certified Court
20 Reporter and a Notary Public within and for the State
21 of Missouri in a certain cause now pending in the
22 Circuit Court of the City of St Louis State of
23 Missouri wherein PAUL GUZZARDO is Plaintiff and GRAND
24 CENTER INC ET AL Are Defendants taken on behalf
25 of the Defendants
1 A P P E A R A N C E S 2 For the Plaintiff CALLIS PAPA HALE SZEWCZYK & DANZINGER 3 By John T Papa 1326 Niedringhaus Avenue 4 Granite City Illinois 62040
5 (618) 452-1323
6 Jtp@callislaw com
7
8 For the Defendants
9 STINSON MORRISON & HECKER LLP
10 By Cicely I Lubben
11 7700 Forsyth Boulevard
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12 Suite 1100
13 St Louis Missouri 63105
14 (314) 863-0800
15 Clubben@stinson com
16
17 Witness PAUL GUZZARDO
18
19 Court Reporter
20 Susannah L Walmsley RPR CCR MO #902
21 Midwest Litigation Services
22 711 North Eleventh Street
23 St Louis MO 63101
24 (314) 644-2191
25 1-800-280-3376
1 IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED by and
2 between counsel for the Plaintiff and counsel for the
3 Defendants that this deposition may be taken in
4 shorthand by Susannah L Walmsley a Registered
5 Professional Reporter Certified Court Reporter and
6 Notary Public and afterwards transcribed into
7 typewriting and the signature of the witness is
8 expressly waived
9 * * * * *
10 PAUL GUZZARDO
11 of lawful age produced sworn and examined on behalf
12 of the Defendants deposes and says
13 DIRECT EXAMINATION
14 BY MS LUBBEN
15 Q Good morning Mr Guzzardo
16 A Good morning
17 Q We just met in the hallway As you know
18 my name is Cicely Lubben and I represent the Grand
19 Center Defendants in the lawsuit that you ve brought
20 against them And today I m here to gather
21 information from you about your claim
22 Can you please state your full name?
23 A I m Paul A Guzzardo
24 Q Have you ever been deposed before?
25 A Yes
1 Q How many times?
2 A Maybe four or five times I haven t
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3 thought about it
4 Q And you understand that you are under oath
5 today?
6 A Yes
7 Q And just briefly I need you to let me know
8 if you don t understand one of my questions If you
9 answer a question I will assume that you ve understood
10 it And you need to answer verbally so that the court
11 reporter can take down accurately your answers
12 A Of course
13 Q If you ve been through a deposition before
14 you ve probably heard those guidelines before?
15 A Sure
16 Q And also that you let me finish my question
17 before you respond and I will try to do the same and
18 not interrupt you
19 You mentioned that you ve been deposed four
20 or five times before Can you tell me about those
21 times what they were in connection with?
22 A The most recent would have been in 2001 I
23 was involved in litigation regarding a wireless
24 frequency company And that was with Attorney General
25 Jay Nixon and myself as the director of a board
1 Q And what is the name of that board?
2 A It was Humanities Instructional Television
3 but it became HITEC as the acronym changed
4 Q H-I-T?
5 A E-C
6 Q E-C okay And what about the other times?
7 A Well there was a property case back in the
8 nineties of a partnership I think I was deposed in
9 that I think It s been so long I don t remember if
10 I was deposed before I gave court testimony I think
11 I was It was a family partnership
12 Why do I remember that sometime I was
13 deposed involving Larry Calhoun and our law office
14 That s been years ago
15 Q What was the name of the law office?
16 A Calhoun and Guzzardo
17 Q Any other depositions?
18 A Well I said three four It s just been
19 so long those are the only things And those two
20 lateral ones you know are more precise
21 Q Okay Have you ever taken any depositions
22 before?
23 A Yes I have when I was practicing
24 full-time
25 Q And about how many depositions have you
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1 taken?
2 A You know I really can t remember I was
3 practicing full-time in the lawyers practice for
4 13 years and I would suspect I would have taken at
5 least a deposition a month maybe
6 Q In that 13-year time period?
7 A I would suspect
8 Q And maybe more frequently when you were
9 practicing full-time?
10 A No that s when I was
11 Q Okay The 13 years?
12 A Yeah So there wasn t that much deposition
13 work
14 Q Okay Is there anything today about your
15 physical mental or emotional health that would
16 interfere with your ability to give accurate and
17 honest testimony today?
18 A I hope not
19 Q Are you on any medications today that would
20 interfere with your ability to understand my
21 questions?
22 A No No
23 Q Did you prepare for today s deposition?
24 A Well I did look at some of my you know
25 correspondence and files yes
1 Q Okay Did you speak with anyone other than
2 your attorney in preparation for today s deposition?
3 A No
4 Q And did you bring any documents with you
5 today?
6 A No I don t have anything with me
7 Q Okay And have you ever testified in court
8 before?
9 A Yes I have
10 Q You mentioned the property case from the
11 nineties?
12 A Yes
13 Q Do you think you testified in court in
14 connection with that matter?
15 A Yes I know I did
16 Q What about the HIT?
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17 A No That case did not go to trial
18 Q And are there any other instances where you
19 testified in court?
20 A I m drawing a blank on that I don t
21 remember
22 Q Have you ever been sued before?
23 A I would have been countersued in an
24 insurance claim involving Travelers Insurance Company
25 and that would have been involving an elevator
1 incident in 1996
2 Q Okay Any other lawsuits against you?
3 A Where I m a Defendant?
4 Q Right
5 A And again I was Plaintiff countersued
6 No I don t think so
7 Q Okay Have you brought any other lawsuits
8 aside from the current one?
9 A Yes Well I described --
10 Q The HITEC one would that be one?
11 A The HITEC lawsuit
12 Q Okay?
13 A I would have brought as a partner a lawsuit
14 in a property action in the nineties against a
15 fraternal organization
16 Q What is the name of that fraternal
17 organizations?
18 A The Elks
19 Q Pardon me?
20 A The Elks Club
21 Q Okay
22 A I brought a lawsuit against a real estate
23 company The principal was a man by the name of Tim
24 Boyle I don t remember if he was the named Plaintiff
25 or some other corporation concerning some property on
1 Washington Avenue
2 Q What was the time period for that lawsuit?
3 A Early nineties probably yeah
4 I did have a lawsuit brought against a
5 doctor who had done a procedure I was a named
6 Plaintiff That was dismissed That was George
7 Zagarfracas I think that s all of them but I cannot
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8 say that with 100 percent accuracy
9 Q So the ones you recall are the HITEC
10 lawsuit the nineties lawsuit against Elks Club the
11 Tim Boyle real estate matter and then an action
12 against a doctor for a procedure?
13 A Yes
14 Q Where do you currently reside?
15 A I currently have two residences Macomb
16 Illinois 1703 South Madison and then the other
17 residence I keep an apartment in La Capital Federal
18 Buenos Aires
19 Q And for how long have you had these two
20 dual residences?
21 A The Buenos Aires was purchased and designed
22 approximately five years ago and the Macomb residence
23 is really a family residence My mom doesn t live
24 there anymore It was an elderly home that I kind of
25 flip back and forth
1 Q So in about 2007 you moved to the Buenos
2 Aires residence?
3 A Yes Yes
4 Q And before that did you --
5 A Go ahead
6 Q So in 2007 you moved in the Buenos Aires
7 residence Do you spend a portion of each year in
8 Buenos Aires and a portion here?
9 A It varies but that is correct
10 Q Generally speaking do you spend the same
11 portion of each year in Buenos Aires?
12 A It depends The last year I ve been in the
13 UK more than Buenos Aires
14 Q Okay What portion of the last fives year
15 have you been in the U S as opposed to traveling to
16 Buenos Aires?
17 A Let s say half That s not exact
18 Q Prior to 2007 before you obtained the
19 Buenos Aires residence did you reside in the Macomb
20 Illinois residence?
21 A No I was in St Louis
22 Q And what was your address in St Louis?
23 A It was Cromwell which is in Clayton And
24 I m embarrassed I would say 725 Cromwell but I don t
25 think that s correct
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1 Q No that s fine I don t need that
2 A Okay
3 Q How long did you reside at that residence?
4 A A year and a half two years Well let s
5 see Maybe three years
6 Q So maybe 2004 --
7 A Yes
8 Q -- time period to 2007?
9 A Yeah
10 Q And before that did you live somewhere else
11 in St Louis?
12 A I would have lived in another apartment
13 close by Cromwell for about a year and a half
14 Q So maybe 2002 2003?
15 A Yeah 2003 basically
16 Q Okay How did you decide to purchase a
17 residence in Buenos Aires and spend part of your time
18 there?
19 A I had been there before I had done work
20 with Argentine architects and so knew Buenos Aires
21 And there were some opportunities given with the
22 December 2001 currency collapse in Argentina
23 Q You said the December 2001 currency
24 collapse which made it more affordable for you to
25 move there and/or do your work there?
1 A Yes
2 Q What is your date of birth?
3 A 12/22/1949
4 Q I just want to go through your educational
5 background Where did you go to high school?
6 A I went to high school at Western Illinois
7 University Laboratory School
8 Q And then where did you go post high school?
9 A Western Illinois University
10 Q What years were you there?
11 A Actually the high school is on the campus
12 so you are part of it so you are there from freshman
13 to senior eight years but college would have been
14 67 through 71
15 Q And then did you go to postgraduate and law
16 school after that?
17 A Yes I did
18 Q Did you go directly into law school?
19 A Yes I did
20 Q Where did you go?
21 A St Louis U
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22 Q And what year did you graduate from St
23 Louis you?
24 A 1974
25 Q And what state bar license have you had?
1 A Illinois and Missouri
2 Q And do you still maintain those as active?
3 A Yes Well when you say active?
4 Q Do you renew those licenses?
5 A I renew those but there are multiple
6 levels of activity on those
7 Q So perhaps you maintain the minimum?
8 A Yes Yes
9 Q In case you ever want to go back into the
10 practice of law?
11 A Of course yes
12 Q Do you have any intention to ever practice
13 law again?
14 A Time will tell
15 Q Any other education following law school?
16 A Not of a formal degree you know
17 matriculating model
18 Q Okay I want to go through your employment
19 following your graduation from SLU Law School What
20 was your first employment following graduation?
21 A A block away
22 Q What was the name?
23 A Calvo It was at that time the Law Offices
24 for Calvo
25 Q What was the name again?
1 A Horas Calvo
2 Q And how long were you employed there?
3 A Probably a year and a half
4 Q Were you an attorney there?
5 A Yes
6 Q And what was your next employment?
7 A It would have been Calvo and Guzzardo but
8 it was a different Calvo
9 Q Okay And how many years were you employed
10 there?
11 A That would have been 14 years
12 Q And would that have been up to about 1990?
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13 A 89
14 Q And you were a partner in that Calvo and
15 Guzzardo Law Firm?
16 A Yes Yes
17 Q And where was your employment following
18 Calvo and Guzzardo?
19 A I took some time off I decided to do some
20 design work travel
21 Q Okay For how long did you take time off?
22 A Well the rest of my life as best as I can
23 I did some legal work for some people in Barcelona so
24 I moved to Barcelona for a while studied some
25 Spanish
1 Q Let s start in 1989 when you left Calvo and
2 Guzzardo When would be your next formal employment?
3 A Well I was working as a lawyer I did
4 some work for Jesuit Refugee Services in Asia for
5 about three months
6 Q What year?
7 A That would have been in 92 And then
8 after returning from Asia I would have been working
9 off and on with an attorney by the name of Linda
10 Murphy who was in Clayton
11 Q What years did you work with Linda Murphy?
12 A It would have crossed over It would have
13 been 92- 93
14 Q Any other formal employment?
15 A After Linda I did consulting an agency an
16 agent I guess you d call it work on a more casual
17 basis with Imrat Kahn who was at the time kind of an
18 international musician
19 Q What is the name again? Can you spell it?
20 A I-M-R-A-T for Imrat K-A-H-N
21 Q He was an international musician?
22 A Yes
23 Q And did you consulting work?
24 A Yes some contracts and work with him
25 trying to put together a book and some other things
1 Q And what years did you do that type of
2 work?
3 A I mean off and on that would have been --
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4 I was developing property at the time That would
5 have been 94 95
6 Q Okay
7 A Maybe it slid into 96 but I m not sure
8 Q What other formal employment?
9 A Well I then began developing the 1521
10 building which was the old Walkover Shoe Factory on
11 Washington Avenue
12 Q So did you spend then some period of time
13 developing different properties in the Washington
14 Avenue area downtown?
15 A Yes Yes
16 Q And what years were you involved in I
17 guess we ll say real estate development in that area?
18 A Well in terms of buying a project and
19 trying to develop it I think the project was
20 purchased in 91 It would have been sat on for a
21 while And after leaving Linda I began a more more
22 aggressively trying to develop that property
23 Q And did you develop that property to
24 conclusion?
25 A Well --
1 Q I m not familiar with that building
2 A Yes there were a number of things which
3 were done on the property There was a loft that I
4 lived in there was an apartment which was rented
5 there was a nightclub that was developed and then the
6 property was sold
7 Q Okay When was the property sold?
8 A It would have been sold at the end of 2002
9 Q Are there other properties that you
10 developed in that area?
11 A No
12 Q So your primary project was the 1521
13 building?
14 A Yes
15 Q Are there any other projects or employment
16 that you worked on since then that we haven t talked
17 about?
18 A Since then?
19 Q Since mid nineties? I think we left off
20 you did the consulting work for the musician You did
21 the 1521 building what did you work on after that?
22 A Well I created Cabool Nightclub
23 Q What years did you create and/or operate
24 Cabool?
25 A Cabool in its earliest stage would have
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1 probably opened up in 96 and ran through 98 in
2 somewhat different manifestations
3 Q Any other projects?
4 A Yeah on Washington Avenue I ran Media Arts
5 which was a not-for-profit
6 Q What years did you run Media Arts?
7 A Media Arts would have been running from I
8 would have taken over Media Arts probably 97 or so
9 and I think the corporation would have been closed in
10 2006 maybe It was a Non-For-Profit Missouri Arts
11 organization
12 Q What was your title or position with Media
13 Arts?
14 A Most of the time I was the president I
15 guess I think there was a period of time that I
16 stepped down maybe for nine months or something
17 Q Did you then return as president?
18 A Yes
19 Q Were you president at the time it closed in
20 2006?
21 A Yes Yes
22 Q Okay Did Media Arts have employees?
23 A Sometimes it did It depended upon the
24 funding
25 Q What kind of positions would the employees
1 have when you had them?
2 A They would have been executive directors
3 who would have been working with me
4 Q Okay Did you receive payment or
5 compensation in your role as president?
6 A No I didn t No I didn t I would have
7 been reimbursed obviously for expenses but no there
8 was no salary
9 Q So if you incurred any expenses or costs on
10 behalf of Media Arts Media Arts would repay you?
11 A Of course Of course
12 Q But you didn t receive a salary?
13 A No I didn t receive a salary from Media
14 Arts
15 Q And then to the extent Media Arts had
16 funding from time to time you had employees and who
17 would have been paid?
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18 A Yes We had executive directors we had
19 DJ s VJ s disk jockeys
20 Q What was the purpose or mission of Media
21 Arts?
22 A Well I used Media Arts as a platform to
23 develop certain ideas regarding information technology
24 and the public s fear
25 Q What kind of projects or work would Media
1 Arts did Media Arts do in furtherance of that
2 purpose?
3 A Well Media Arts did a series of
4 installations ran a media lab at the corner of
5 Washington and Tucker Those are kind of general
6 It obviously had a list that would be
7 submitted to the funders The Regional Arts
8 Commission 2004 and I think the City of St Louis
9 through some funds gave money to Media Arts And we
10 would just break down on an annual basis the specifics
11 of what was done who was involved what the nature of
12 the audience was how wide the audience is That
13 would vary from year to year
14 Q So you mentioned that Media Arts received
15 funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the City
16 of St Louis Any other sources?
17 A And a group called 2004 And there may
18 have been -- and there would have been small donations
19 from individuals
20 Q Okay What other employment or significant
21 projects did you work on that we haven t talked about
22 yet?
23 A Well I also have my projects as a Fellow
24 at the University of Dundee
25 Q What year was that?
1 A Well I am currently a Fellow at the
2 University of Dundee That s in the School of the
3 Environment That s Dundee Scotland I started
4 doing some projects some you know minimal
5 compensation back in 2006
6 Q Okay Any other employment or projects? I
7 know you have done a lot of different things so I m
8 just wanting to hit on the significant long-term
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9 projects
10 A There would be some projects with some pay
11 for me to come some place and do something but in
12 terms of carrying a card --
13 Q I understand
14 A You know I had a Media Arts card I had a
15 card with Linda Murphy I have a University of Dundee
16 card So that s how I m trying to answer this now
17 Q And that s helpful So are there any other
18 significant ones?
19 A That I would have a calling card that I
20 would give someone? The answer to that would probably
21 be no
22 Q Okay I want to back up just briefly
23 Your experience as an attorney when you practiced as
24 an attorney what kind of lawyer were you?
25 A Largely workmen s comp
1 Q As a lawyer did you ever draft review or
2 revise contracts for clients?
3 A Rarely Very rarely No I did very
4 little transaction No not for clients No I don t
5 think I ever did transactional work for clients
6 Q Okay Would you have reviewed any option
7 contracts for a client ever?
8 A No My partner Larry Calvo handled the
9 transactional work
10 Q Did you ever sign any contracts on behalf
11 of Calvo and Guzzardo like in connection with your
12 business as running your law firm?
13 A Sure I m sure I did You know I can t
14 be specific but I m sure I would have had to
15 Q Did you ever do any condemnation or eminent
16 domain type work when you were practicing as an
17 attorney?
18 A No I didn t
19 Q And then in connection with the
20 non-attorney work when you worked with Linda Murphy
21 or the consulting work did you the Media Arts work
22 did you have the opportunity to draft review or
23 revise contracts in connection with any of that work?
24 A Yes I dealt with subcontracts
25 involving -- I ll give you the acronym SLDC which I
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1 guess is the St Louis Development Corporation
2 Q What would be an example of a type of
3 contract that you did?
4 A Well I was putting together with St Louis
5 Development Corporation a contract for a media plaza
6 at the corner of Washington and Tucker and I did get
7 involved in that contract And I think that had an
8 options provision It had multiple layers
9 Q And what was the year roughly of that
10 project?
11 A That would have been shortly before the
12 Media Box so we re probably talking it could have
13 been 99 or 2000 I would have to look at those
14 documents
15 Q And would that have been work you would
16 have been doing on behalf of the Media Arts?
17 A Yes
18 Q Because it s involving --
19 A Yes Media Arts There were two It was
20 Media Arts and another not-for-profit corporation by
21 the name of City something or other
22 Q Okay Do you recall any other instances
23 where you ve ever been involved with an options
24 contract other than this litigation?
25 A No I don t at this point I do not have a
1 recollection of that
2 Q What other type of contract work have you
3 done for as a consultant or with the Media Arts or
4 any of the other significant projects or employment
5 we ve talked about?
6 A I think I would have reviewed some
7 contracts for Imrat Kahn during you know my work
8 with him but my input was limited in terms of what he
9 would do
10 Q Okay Would those be contracts like for
11 him to perform at a venue?
12 A Yeah
13 Q Things like that?
14 A Yeah
15 Q Any other contract work that you recall as
16 you sit here?
17 A No but inevitably if you are alive today
18 one confronts contracts in various personal aspects of
19 one s life so of course I deal with some but I was
20 not a transactional attorney
21 Q Okay You mentioned the Media Arts
22 not-for-profit Have you ever served in any capacity
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23 with any other not-for-profit entities?
24 A Well yes And the litigation with that
25 Attorney General Jay Nixon was regarding this matter
1 I was a Director of Humanities Instructional
2 Television
3 Q And what years did you serve as director?
4 A I would have I believe 1999 I would have
5 come on the board and I was director till you know
6 February of 2005 so that would have been six years or
7 so
8 Q Okay When were you involved -- did you
9 bring a lawsuit in some capacity against HIT?
10 A Yes I did I brought a lawsuit to remove
11 all of the directors for wrongdoing
12 Q What year was that lawsuit?
13 A I think it was 2000 I think it was 2000
14 Q And what was the outcome of that lawsuit?
15 A The outcome of the lawsuit was that the
16 directors were removed The Attorney General joined
17 me in the litigation and the directors were removed
18 Q And did you remain a director during this
19 whole time?
20 A Yes Yes
21 Q Okay And was some process put in place to
22 fill the empty spots for the directors that were
23 removed?
24 A Yes There is a procedure under Missouri
25 law regarding -- there s a complex series of bits that
1 come into play regarding this And that was done
2 where the corporation was reconfigured there had to
3 be sort of actions involving the Federal
4 Communications Corporation because we were holders of
5 a wireless license And it was a fairly complex
6 procedure
7 Q Okay
8 A But eventually resolved
9 Q Are there any other not-for-profit boards
10 that you served as a director officer?
11 A Yes I m embarrassed sometimes
12 Crossings Crossings was a musical organization which
13 put a series of musical events together and I would
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14 have been on that board probably for four or five
15 years
16 Q What time period?
17 A I d say 99 through maybe 2004 maybe five
18 years
19 Q How did your service on that board end?
20 A I resigned I didn t have time You know
21 I don t -- nothing of any particular memory
22 Q Okay How did your service on the HITEC
23 board end in February 2005?
24 A Well I was -- in 2005 my term was coming
25 to an end and I had been asked by the president of the
1 board Fred Blake B-L-A-K-E who was the president of
2 math and philanthropy to submit a nomination for
3 another term So I submitted my name for another term
4 and there was an election held and I was not reelected
5 to the board
6 Q How long were the terms?
7 A Well the terms varied because in the
8 creation of the board the Attorney General felt it was
9 critical to have an inner -- you know an overlapping
10 structure
11 Q So it wasn t like all of the directors came
12 off at the same time?
13 A No No and because of the history of the
14 problems and the public face of that So there was a
15 structure put into play that we could agree on I had
16 a three-year term so if my term was coming to an end
17 in February I would have had the first three year
18 terms and then I think everybody had three-year terms
19 off that because we would have been overlapping
20 Q So in February 2005 your three-year term
21 was ending?
22 A Right
23 Q And you were looking to be renewed for
24 another three-year term?
25 A Correct
1 Q Did anyone from HITEC tell you the reasons
2 that you were not elected to another term?
3 A No there was no communication
4 Q And who made the decision -- let s see
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5 You said you were asked to submit to another term the
6 election was held Who were the people who were
7 voting on --
8 A The board
9 Q So the other members of the board excluding
10 you did?
11 A Well you are saying excluding me and it s
12 curious I don t remember that
13 Q I m just trying to figure out who votes
14 A The board We were all voting at that
15 time
16 Q So you can vote for yourself?
17 A Yes
18 Q And who else you want?
19 A Yes yes yes I m sure
20 Q So in February of 2005 all of the members
21 of the board are given some kind of ballot?
22 A Yes
23 Q And they vote who is going to get removed?
24 A Of course
25 Q And who is to remain?
1 A Right
2 Q And no one on the board as of February 2005
3 gave you any reason for why you were not reelected in
4 2005?
5 A Yes that is correct I was not advised
6 Q Okay Have you ever served on any other
7 not-for-profit boards other than HITEC and Crossings?
8 A Media Arts of course
9 Q And Media Arts Yes I m sorry Media
10 Arts Crossings HITEC?
11 A Oh yes yes
12 Q I m sorry I m asking you to go through your
13 past
14 A Yes yes of course I was on the Sheldon
15 which is the Sheldon Arts Foundation I assume it was
16 called that yes the Sheldon Arts Foundation I was
17 on the Sheldon Arts Foundation
18 Q What years?
19 A I would have been on the Sheldon Arts
20 Foundation board from 19 -- it could have been 90
21 91 through 93 maybe
22 Q And how did your service on that board end?
23 A There was a falling out with the president
24 of the board Dr Lee Jardine and he asked me and
25 another member of the board to step down because of
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1 policy disagreements
2 Q Who was the other member that was asked to
3 step down?
4 A He had a copper manufacturing business in
5 St Louis Excuse me Brandon I m sorry
6 Q That s fine If you remember it later just
7 let me know
8 A Yes
9 Q So in 93 94 you had a falling out with
10 the president and he asked you to step down and you
11 did?
12 A Yes
13 Q And you mentioned a policy disagreement
14 Can you just briefly tell me what the disagreement was
15 about if you recall?
16 A Of course I recall I m writing about it
17 now
18 The Sheldon had received a substantial
19 commitment for funding for an expansion from a Mr
20 Fisher who was the eventual funder for the Gateway
21 Not-For-Profit Corporation
22 And I had been I was a member of the board
23 when that came in and because of my reputation within
24 architectural circles I was asked to organize the
25 selection of the architects and to assist in
1 developing the program for the expansion of the
2 Sheldon Auditorium And that went on That process
3 that I oversaw in various capacities would change I
4 think I was a chairman of the committee and then a
5 member of the committee and then a sub of the
6 committee as I said to develop a design for it
7 And the design I believe contracts were
8 about to be let to build the design There was a
9 large ceremony awarding celebrating the design And
10 things went awry and the design was not used then to
11 complete the project so there was a dispute regarding
12 the development of the design and the termination of
13 the design
14 Q Okay And you said the funding came from
15 Fisher?
16 A Yes
17 Q Did you leave the project with any ill will
18 towards between you and Fisher?
-
19 A I never met Mr Fisher
20 Q He just provided the funding?
21 A I never met Mr Fisher
22 Q And you mentioned that he also provided
23 funding to Gateway Not-For-Profit Corporation?
24 A No I was just using that as a way to
25 identify and he had a fondness for Gateway and I
1 forget --
2 COURT REPORTER I m sorry?
3 BY MS LUBBEN
4 Q Okay Was there any relationship between
5 the Gateway Not-For-Profit Corporation and the Sheldon
6 Arts Foundation?
7 A I cannot answer that question because I
8 don t remember and I was not directly involved with
9 the funding whether or not Gateway came into
10 existence afterwards or whether there was a crossover
11 I just don t know
12 Q Any other not-for-profit boards?
13 A No I hopefully haven t forgotten
14 anything
15 Q Have you ever served on any for-profit
16 boards?
17 A No
18 Q Who is Sung Ho Kim?
19 A Sung Ho Kim is with AxiOme That s the
20 name of his company He is an architect and
21 instructor Washington University
22 Q When did you first have any contact with
23 Sung Ho Kim?
24 A I would have been introduced whether it
25 was April or May to meet Sung Ho Kim through Angela
1 Miller who is a Professor of Art History at Washington
2 University
3 Q What year roughly would that have been
4 that introduction through Angela Miller to Sung Ho
5 Kim?
6 A That would have been at the end of 2002
7 Q And what would have been the purpose of the
8 introduction to Sung Ho Kim?
9 A Well the year before Angela would have
-
10 arranged for me to meet and spend time with William
11 Mitchell William Mitchell recently deceased was
12 the Dean of Architecture at MIT and was the author of
13 a series of significant early books on information
14 systems in urban design Somewhat of a great man
15 And at that meeting with Mitchell and
16 Miller we discussed some of the ideas which were
17 driving my praxis and how MIT was a hot spot for the
18 development and study of these ideas
19 Q Okay Some of the ideas that you discussed
20 with Mitchell were some of those ideas ideas that
21 were ultimately incorporated into your Media Box
22 concept?
23 A Yes
24 Q And then Sung Ho Kim he came from MIT
25 right?
1 A Correct
2 Q And so is that how you kind of heard about
3 him?
4 A Yeah At that time though the name Sung Ho
5 Kim was not mentioned would not have been mentioned
6 Q Okay So it was maybe natural a year after
7 you had met Mitchell for Professor Miller to then
8 follow-up with you to meet --
9 A Yes
10 Q -- Sung Ho Kim?
11 A Yes
12 Q When did you first have contact with Sung
13 Ho Kim in connection with the Media Box?
14 I know you said you think you met him at
15 the end of 2002?
16 A Well when I met him we said let s discuss
17 some collaborative projects And for the next few
18 months we would have spent a fair amount of time
19 together Sung Ho would be showing me some of his
20 works He was from the Robotics Department of MIT
21 lab Again I m unclear on the defined divisions
22 within that
23 Q Okay?
24 A And I was showing him work which I had done
25 with Media Lab my Media Lab my nightclub and with
-
1 MetroLink which I have not mentioned
2 Q What is it called Metro?
3 A MetroLink
4 Q Oh MetroLink okay
5 A So that would have been an ongoing kind of
6 discourse for six months of 2002
7 Q Okay At some -- and if you ever need a
8 break just let me know
9 A Sure I m fine
10 Q So for six months you are showing each
11 other your work talking maybe about potential ideas
12 or projects going forward?
13 A Yes
14 Q What happened after that six months did
15 you select some task or project you were going to move
16 forward on? What was the next step in your
17 relationship with Sung Ho Kim?
18 A There was a great deal of give and take in
19 terms of ideas Sung Ho would talk about projects he
20 was trying to put together with other members of the
21 Wash U faculty
22 I introduced him to an architect who I had
23 worked with on the MetroLink project and also had set
24 up on a Columbia church project which I helped put
25 together Fabian Wonch (phonetic)
1 So it was kind of you know this rich
2 intellectual kind of social scene back and forth and
3 whether or not these ideas might find a place in St
4 Louis to develop I then introduced him to Eric
5 Friedman
6 Q When would that have been?
7 A Sometime probably in that six months I
8 don t -- I can t tell you anything more specific than
9 that
10 Q Okay Did you ever enter into any written
11 agreements with Sung Ho Kim?
12 A No The only thing at one point Eric had
13 an LLC and that would have been sometime but then
14 that expired and we did nothing further on it
15 Q And was that like GFK or GKF?
16 A Yeah something initials
17 Q Okay And do you know if there was ever an
18 operating agreement or any other written documents --
19 A No
20 Q -- other than --
21 A No no no
22 Q -- creating an LLC --
23 A It was like that was done and then we would
-
24 do something more if these things develop And
25 obviously nothing developed
1 Q So other than any documents related to GKF
2 or GFK you don t have any other written agreements
3 with Sung Ho Kim?
4 A No No
5 Q What was Sung Ho Kim s role in connection
6 with the Media Box?
7 A Well I mean the contract details you
8 know A lot of it --
9 Q Let me back up So you mean option
10 contract?
11 A Yeah Well --
12 Q Yeah yeah we ll get to that
13 A Yeah
14 Q Was Sung Ho was he involved in drafting or
15 negotiating the Option Contract?
16 A No No
17 Q Was he involved in any of the condemnation
18 proceedings that were involved in this lawsuit?
19 A No
20 Q What was Sung Ho Kim s role in connection
21 with any funding for the Media Box project?
22 A Sung Ho was working and had been working
23 and had a partner out of Thailand and there was -- in
24 the initial discussions he said I want you to meet my
25 partner possibly he and his family would have some
1 interest in investing in the Media Box And his name
2 was Todd I think they went to school together
3 Q Do you recall his last name?
4 A No I don t
5 Q So Sung Ho Kim said that Todd might have
6 interest in investing in Media Box?
7 A Yes
8 Q What about Sung Ho Kim himself did he have
9 any funds?
10 A No
11 Q Was a firm commitment ever received from
12 Todd?
13 A No
14 Q So other than a potential investment from
-
15 Todd Sung Ho Kim didn t have any involvement in
16 possible investment in the Media Box project?
17 A No
18 Q That s correct okay
19 So how would you describe Sung Ho Kim s
20 role with Media Box? Is it fair to say that he was
21 the person who was responsible for designing the
22 architectural design --
23 A You know --
24 Q -- component of the Media Box?
25 A Yeah He tried to create some
1 responsibilities yes He would have been the person
2 who would have been designing the structural
3 obviously with my -- in a collaborative fashion I
4 had designed a series of projects
5 Q Okay Other than designing the structure
6 for the Media Box in collaboration with you what other
7 responsibilities did Sung Ho Kim have in connection
8 with the Media Box project?
9 A Well you know we were trying to -- this
10 was a consortium with people thinking about ideas and
11 theory and what would be the functioning program So
12 okay architecture and program are almost impossible
13 to divide
14 Q Okay So would Sung Ho Kim also provide
15 input or feedback on the prospective program
16 content --
17 A Yes
18 Q -- for Media Box as well?
19 A I would give him copies of all my papers
20 invite him to talks I would give I would give talks
21 at his office to people who were doing drafting and
22 doing work and thinking about it the Media Box and
23 other projects that he had
24 Q When you say copies of all papers are you
25 referring to like published papers where you would
1 write on topics relevant to Media Box --
2 A Media Box
3 COURT REPORTER Please wait until she
4 finishes the question I can t hang on when you keep
5 interrupting
-
6 "When you say copies of all papers are you
7 referring to like published papers "
8 BY MS LUBBEN
9 Q Where you are describing or discussing
10 components of the Media Box?
11 A Or pre-Media Box papers also
12 Q Okay And then you said talks at his
13 office where they re doing the drafting
14 It s my understanding that Sung Ho Kim had
15 maybe a group of students or architects associated
16 with Wash U that would help him work on Media Box
17 designs is that --
18 A Yes Yes
19 Q Okay So from time to time you might come
20 and talk to him or other students at Washington
21 University about Media Box concepts or pre-Media Box
22 concepts?
23 A Correct
24 Q Okay Is there anything that we haven t
25 talked about any additional responsibility with Sung
1 Ho Kim in connection with the Media Box?
2 A I mean that s difficult to you know
3 instill years and work of projects with Sung Ho
4 Generally we ve covered the outlines
5 Q So it sounds like it was a collaboration
6 you did not have any written document that said here
7 is what Sung Ho is going to do specifically?
8 A No
9 Q Okay Did you pay Sung Ho Kim for the
10 architectural designs that he provided for the Media
11 Box?
12 A No I did not
13 Q Did you pay him any compensation for his
14 time in preparing that?
15 A No I did not
16 Q Did you pay any costs he might have
17 incurred in connection with preparing the Media Box
18 designs or models?
19 A No No I did not
20 Q Okay When was your --
21 A Yeah -- no Media Arts paid Sung Ho Kim
22 some money I did not But Sung Ho Kim did receive
23 money from Media Arts
24 Q Do you know how much money he received?
25 A No I cannot tell you that I mean I don t
-
1 remember but there were payments from Media Arts to
2 Sung Ho Kim
3 Q Were they payments for the actual designs
4 or for the costs of materials?
5 A I don t know whether or not the
6 corporation you know was that particular in terms of
7 him itemizing hours work or expenses I don t think
8 so but I don t remember
9 Q Do you have any idea what the amount was
10 was it under $1 000 or was it a huge amount?
11 A No it wasn t huge Could it have been
12 $3 000 one year? It never would have exceeded that
13 And could it have been over a couple of years? That s
14 possible but I don t --
15 Q And we are talking about work Sung Ho Kim
16 did in connection with the Media Box right?
17 A Yes
18 Q Not some other project?
19 A Right yes
20 Q When was your last contact with Sung Ho
21 Kim?
22 A It would have been in the summer of 2005
23 Q What was the last contact did you have an
24 email communication with him did you speak with him?
25 A I was at a I think I was at a dinner that
1 Eric Friedman had scheduled for Jill McGuire and some
2 other people in the arts community
3 Q So from about 2002 to 2005 you had a lot of
4 contact with Sung Ho Kim How come you haven t had
5 any contact with him since the summer of 2005?
6 A Well you know certain events which are
7 the basis of this lawsuit created a bit of a rift
8 Q Okay What is your rift with Sung Ho Kim?
9 A Well Sung Ho you know came to Washington
10 U as a -- what s the term Tenure in waiting
11 there s a term for that
12 Q He s hoping to put in enough time that
13 he ll get a permanent position there?
14 A Yes You can be hired as a --
15 Q Tenure track?
16 A Tenure track of course Yes of course
17 Sung Ho Kim came to Washington University with a
18 tenure track position
19 Subsequent to the Media Box contract or
-
20 around the same time Sung Ho Kim got married And he
21 married Heather Woffer who also got a position as a
22 tenure track professor at Washington University And
23 you know obviously that was important to them and
24 that was you know kind of the defining controlling
25 of their time
1 And after the Jim Day the series of events
2 that involved Jim Day and the Post Dispatch Wagman
3 article things got a little dicey
4 Q Okay So the Jim Day it s my
5 understanding that the Post Dispatch published an
6 article about Jim Day and the eminent domain issues in
7 late January or early February 2005?
8 A Yeah
9 Q So after that did Sung Ho Kim say something
10 to you to the effect that he didn t want to work with
11 you anymore or what do you mean when you say things
12 got dicey after that article with Sung Ho Kim?
13 A Well Sung Ho at the time of the article
14 was designing -- I forgot my other employments so I m
15 filling in some of the gaps now
16 Sung Ho Kim was designing the Secret Baker
17 stage sets for St Louis Community College I at that
18 time had been hired as Director of Secret Baker which
19 was the title of a play And Sung Ho was also hired
20 as the Stage Designer or AxiOme would have been hired
21 as the Stage Designer So that was going on at the
22 time of the article and the Post article press and
23 neither Sung Ho nor his wife Heather attended the
24 play
25 Q So is it your contention that Sung Ho and
1 his wife did not attend the play because of whatever
2 information was published in the Post Dispatch
3 article?
4 A You know I would read it that way
5 Q Did they ever tell you that?
6 A No
7 Q Did they ever tell you why they didn t
8 attend the play?
9 A We didn t -- no
10 Q Did you ever ask them?
-
11 A No
12 Q Following the play did you have any contact
13 or communications with them from the time of the play
14 to the summer of 05?
15 A Yes I believe there might have been a
16 meeting or two arranged by Eric Friedman to see if
17 there was the possibility of resurrecting the project
18 in light of this political maelstrom
19 Q Okay So when was the play do you
20 remember was it in the spring of 05?
21 A No No The play was in constant
22 production from -- production I shouldn t say in
23 preparation from mid January to the end of February
24 and it would have been running for a couple weeks the
25 last two weeks probably of January 2005
1 Q Okay So the play was in
2 January/February 2005?
3 A Or it was in production
4 Q In production?
5 A Yes
6 Q So the performance it would have been
7 presented in late February?
8 A Yes two weeks in late February
9 Q Okay So Sung Ho Kim did not attend the
10 Secret play that was in late February Between late
11 February and --
12 A I should add -- let me clarify
13 Q Sure
14 A Sung Ho and a couple of his students came
15 in for five minutes to take photos during the
16 performance It was slightly disruptive as to the
17 actual performance And then he left
18 Q And you think he was going in there so he
19 would have a record of the stage of the work he had
20 invested?
21 A Absolutely yes
22 Q Okay So between late February and the
23 dinner party in the summer 05 there may have been a
24 few meetings with Eric Friedman?
25 A Yes And was there one was there two
1 yes
-
2 Q Okay And we re going to come back later
3 and talk about those meeting more but let me move on
4 a little bit
5 Do you know if Sung Ho Kim continues to
6 work with -- on projects with Grand Center
7 Incorporated or the other Defendants in this lawsuit
8 in any capacity?
9 A From what I can read from the newspapers
10 yes
11 Q So you ve read about him doing different
12 projects with the Defendants?
13 A Yes
14 Q What is the Friedman Development Group?
15 A It s a real estate development group
16 commercial generally
17 Q And who is Eric Friedman?
18 A Eric Friedman is the principal of the
19 group
20 Q I understand you worked with Eric Friedman
21 and his company in connection with the Media Box
22 project Before Media Box had you worked with Eric on
23 other projects?
24 A Eric represented me in the sale of the 1521
25 building
1 Q Okay Any other projects you worked with
2 him on?
3 A We talked about other projects but in
4 terms of other projects where things were actually
5 done and contracts were signed it would only be those
6 two
7 Q When did you first have contact with Eric
8 in connection with the Media Box project?
9 A I called or sent him an email after I
10 received an email from Vince Schoemehl
11 Q When did you receive your phone call or
12 email from Vince Schoemehl?
13 A That would have been in July of 2003 It
14 could have been the last week in June but I don t
15 quite remember now
16 Q Sure That first contact from Vince
17 Schoemehl in 2003 what did he communicate to you?
18 A He said he was aware of my work and he
19 thought I would be a good fit for Grand Center And
20 there was a specific piece of property that he wished
21 to discuss with me and he indicated that he would like
22 to set up a meeting with me which would include Emily
23 Pulitzer and at that time the president of the board
24 whose name whose last name began with an N but I had
-
25 no contact with that man on any occasion but there
1 was a third name for that meeting
2 Q Okay And what was your response?
3 A Fine
4 Q Do you recall anything else you discussed
5 in that first communication?
6 A No I think that s fair
7 Q And so then a meeting was set up?
8 A Yes
9 Q And do you know when the meeting was? I
10 have some documents we can look at in a little bit
11 A Yes
12 Q Sometime after July 2003?
13 A 2003 It was July or August It may have
14 been later in July I m not 100 percent sure Within
15 a two to three-week period of time the meeting was set
16 up
17 Q Okay Who was present at the meeting?
18 A It would have been Sung Ho myself Eric
19 Friedman Vince Schoemehl and Emily Pulitzer
20 Q And what happened at the meeting?
21 A There would have been the casual
22 introductions I reviewed -- because it was Pulitzer
23 I reviewed my architectural work and had a series of
24 international magazines which had published my
25 projects
1 I remember pulling out a picture of me and
2 Gary the architect in a Spanish magazine where my
3 project was next to the Bilbao Museum
4 Q Okay
5 A So that was part of it
6 And then I think I gave a presentation of
7 Media Lab content as a kind of protocol for Grand
8 Center
9 And then the third part would have been
10 Sung Ho gave a tour of his office and showed the
11 various models of the various proposed projects
12 So that one two three
13 Q Okay What response did you get from Vince
14 Schoemehl?
15 A Everybody was highly enthusiastic
-
16 Q Same for Emily Pulitzer?
17 A Yes
18 Q Let me back up to your first communication
19 with Vince Schoemehl
20 When he first contacted you he said he was
21 aware of your work thought you would be a good fit
22 for Grand Center And you said he told you that he
23 had a specific piece of property that he wanted to
24 discuss with you Do you know at that time if there
25 was a specific piece of property in mind that he
1 communicated to you?
2 A I would backtrack "I want to talk to you
3 about some property that we have " Maybe that was the
4 line
5 Q Okay?
6 A And that is probably a fairer description
7 of what would have occurred in that phone call I
8 cannot remember whether or not it went down to "I have
9 a specific one"
10 Q Okay
11 A I just can t
12 Q But you don t recall him telling you or
13 referring to what we now know is the Day property?
14 A No I don t think so I don t think so
15 Q Now in this meeting with you Sung Ho
16 Eric Vince and Emily was there any discussion at that
17 in person meeting about where this potential project
18 would be located?
19 A I very much think so Obviously it s been
20 nine years but I m sure I left that meeting with a
21 certain excitement because of that property and its
22 relationship to the Pulitzer and its relationship to
23 the Contemporary which was under construction at that
24 time offered such a rare extraordinary opportunity as
25 a platform So I m almost I m almost positive that
1 we talked about the Day property
2 Q Would Vincent Schoemehl have been the
3 person to bring up that property or was this a
4 property that Sung Ho Kim had already seen and looked
5 at?
6 A Oh no no no
-
7 Q So who --
8 A It would have to be Vincent Schoemehl
9 Q Okay Do you remember anything specific
10 that he told you about that particular piece of
11 property that I m going to refer to as the Day
12 property?
13 A To my memory there were a series of events
14 afterwards And I m not able to pinpoint what
15 happened at that meeting and what might have happened
16 a few days later in a conversation that succeeded
17 those meetings
18 So within a week or so I was aware this was
19 a piece of property there were condemnation issues
20 condemnation was going to be getting -- there were
21 remediation issues
22 Whether or not that was discussed at that
23 meeting or where you know the phone calls between
24 Eric and myself elaborated and developed that within
25 the next two weeks I just don t remember
1 Q Okay Do you remember anything else
2 specific about your first in-person meeting with
3 Vincent Schoemehl and Emily Pulitzer?
4 A Just that it was extraordinarily congenial
5 and there seemed to be a great deal of excitement that
6 now with this TIF this is the type of project which
7 would be welcomed and could be done at Grand Center
8 Q When is the next time you had any
9 communication with Vincent Schoemehl or anyone else
10 associated with Defendants?
11 A Well at that time Eric Friedman was going
12 to become the point person And we were bringing
13 material to his office and he was sending material to
14 Grand Center so that was how the system began to
15 work
16 Q So Eric became the point person This is
17 late summer 2003?
18 A Yes
19 Q The Option Contract was signed in the
20 spring of 2004 What contact do you recall having
21 with Vincent Schoemehl direct contact with Vincent
22 Schoemehl between this meeting here and when the
23 Option Contract was signed?
24 A Well there was another meeting at Sung
25 Ho s office for further for thinking through these
-
1 issues And Craig Kaminer was at that meeting I
2 don t believe Emily Pulitzer was and I m almost sure
3 Vince was but I think Craig stayed later So that
4 would have been like a second actual physical meeting
5 Materials were moving back and forth I
6 put together summaries of work done The MetroLink
7 project was kind of sent to them
8 But then that meeting the second meeting
9 at Sung Ho Kim s office again I m suspecting 30 days
10 or so you know I dropped off things at the office of
11 Grand Center more in sort of a casual sort of way
12 ten-minute conversation or something like that
13 There was a consultant that came in from
14 Chicago that may have been in December that Grand
15 Center was bringing in to evaluate the district
16 I had received a call either directly from
17 Vince or Eric that they wanted to meet with me I
18 remember spending some time at their office discussing
19 Media Box concepts you know St Louis Media Heritage
20 consultants
21 Q Okay Let me back up a minute So you
22 mentioned this second in-person meeting with Craig
23 Kaminer Sung Ho Kim Vincent Schoemehl and yourself
24 Do you recall any discussions about the Day property
25 at that meeting?
1 A That would not have been the primary
2 purpose of the meeting And there may well have been
3 some secondary side remarks regarding condemnation
4 issues I don t recall that at that time
5 Q Okay And then you might have seen Vincent
6 Schoemehl in passing when you are passing off
7 materials to Grand Center from time to time?
8 A Correct
9 Q Do you recall discussing the Day property
10 with Mr Schoemehl during any of those meetings?
11 A If there was a discussion it would have
12 been a fairly quick hopefully things are moving
13 forward and nothing more than that
14 Q Do you remember any other contact with
15 Vincent Schoemehl in this summer 2003 to spring 2004
16 time period when the Option Contract was signed?
17 I m talking about the time period leading
18 up to the signing of the Option Contract Do you
19 recall any other discussions with Mr Schoemehl about
20 the Day property?
-
21 A About the Day property?
22 Q Right
23 A Face to face?
24 Q Or an email I mean I have the emails
25 Let s talk about on the phone or face to face
1 A No I don t recall face to face or on the
2 phone
3 Q Okay
4 THE WITNESS I m going to take a break for
5 just a second okay?
6 MS LUBBEN Sure
7 (A short break was then taken)
8 (Defendant Exhibit A Exclusive
9 Representation Agreement was then identified )
10 BY MS LUBBEN
11 Q I m handing you what we ve marked as
12 Exhibit A Can you identify this?
13 A That s -- oh yes That s an agreement
14 with Eric that he would be looking for property for
15 me
16 Q Okay So that s your signature on the
17 first page of the Exhibit A?
18 A Yes
19 Q So this is your Exclusive Representation
20 Agreement with Eric Friedman s company?
21 A Yes Yeah
22 Q And this is dated?
23 A 6/13
24 Q 6/13/03?
25 A Yes
1 Q Prior to June 13th 2003 what discussions
2 did you have with Eric Friedman or anyone else in his
3 company about what you were looking for as far as
4 property wise?
5 A Well Eric was my realtor on the sale of
6 the 1521 building
7 Q Right?
8 A And after the sale I discussed I might like
9 to use the proceeds for other property and would look
10 for some And it proceeded on a fairly casual basis
11 I was in and out And at one time he said let s start
-
12 looking more seriously and here is the agreement and I
13 said fine
14 Q Prior to signing this agreement did you
15 talk to him about what size of property you were
16 looking for?
17 A It was fairly spongy you know in terms
18 of you know what s out there what are things
19 costing what do I want to do You know I was -- it
20 was not terribly precise
21 We talked a little bit about you know if
22 someone else involved I mean Sung Ho and I had some
23 discussions that possibly we could have something for
24 Media Arts for rent So there were certain sort of
25 soft parameters which eventually found itself into the
1 Media Box
2 Q Before June 13th 2003 what did you tell
3 Eric about how much you were willing to spend?
4 A I don t think I said