MOORHEAD — Management of Epic Companies’ signature building in the heart of downtown Moorhead, Block E, has been turned over to a Fargo-based company.
Personal Touch Property Management took over management of the commercial building and apartment complex at 801 Main Ave. on Friday, May 24, according to an email Epic Companies sent to tenants Thursday.
The email, with the subject line, “Urgent: New Property Management,” said Personal Touch would be in contact with tenants and that the June 1 rent should be paid to that firm.
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It is not clear if management of other properties in the Fargo-Moorhead area has been transferred from Epic to Personal Touch or other property management firms.
The Forum left messages on Friday with Personal Touch and a longtime spokesperson for Epic.
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Local developers and development officials have told The Forum they heard rumors about difficulties at Epic, including layoffs and contractors not being paid.
The Forum attempted to contact senior Epic officials, including President Todd Berning, and received no replies.
“I’ve heard a ton of rumors. I’ve heard from so many different people,” Derrick LaPoint, president and CEO of Downtown Moorhead Inc., said earlier this week.
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Epic’s Moorhead projects — the downtown Block E building and Vanne apartment and commercial complex in north Moorhead — are both complete and have tenants, LaPoint said.
However, he said, the Bolig Square project apparently won’t be built.
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Bolig Square was to go up at the corner of Center Avenue and Fourth Street between the U.S. Bank building and the Red River. LaPoint said the property is expected to go up for sale.
“They (Epic) were planning to list that site due to challenges on the site layout and parking issues. … They are moving on from the site,” LaPoint said. “We have had interest from a few other developers on the site.”
Epic Companies covers a wide range of enterprises including real estate development, construction and property management. The corporation operates throughout the region, particularly in North Dakota and Minnesota.
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WDAY News, a broadcast partner of The Forum, said a former Epic employee told its reporters that investors in the firm held an emergency meeting Thursday with participants at the company’s offices in West Fargo and virtually attending from elsewhere.
Epic's West Fargo office has had a sign on the door since last week that says it is open by appointment only.
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The company’s officials have remained silent to press inquiries and made no public statements on the status of the company.
Epic has been one of the most active developers in the Fargo-Moorhead area with projects including the multi-building Lights complex at 32nd Avenue and Sheyenne Street on the south side of West Fargo and several buildings in the Yards at Sheyenne development in West Fargo’s downtown district.
The company is in the process of finishing up its Gateway development in downtown Fargo along Main Avenue near the Red River. Unite, the third building in that three-building Gateway group, appears to be well along in construction, but there was little activity at the site ahead of the holiday weekend on Friday. The Gateway North and Arch buildings have been completed.
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Epic has also been building its Eola development in south Fargo, south of Interstate 94 and west of 45th Street South on former Fargo Park District land. One building has been put up on the property, but construction of the Wave waterpark and resort has stalled.
WDAY reported that Jim Gilmour, Fargo's strategic planning director, said foundation work had begun on the waterpark but was stopped because of a redesign. The city did not comment further on the future of the waterpark.
Another of Epic's projects is The Beacon near downtown Grand Forks.
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Grand Forks Mayor Brandon Bochenski told WDAY that two of the three buildings for the Beacon are completed. A third building was recently delayed, leaving a public square, similar to the one at The Lights, still needing to be completed.
"We understand they're having some financial issues, but you know, we're waiting to hear where that lands," Bochenski told WDAY. "So ultimately, we're very well protected by the contracts that we have in place."
Helmut Schmidt / The Forum
Bochenski said he learned about the issues from an Epic employee. For now, he said, Grand Forks is taking a wait-and-see approach.
KX News reported that an employee working on Epic's projects in Minot told them Epic leaders stopped construction on the Midwest Federal Building, also known as the "The Big M."
Epic Companies also manages Norsk Høstfest, an annual Scandinavian cultural festival based in Minot.
The Forum left messages with the North Dakota Securities Department but received no replies as of publishing time.
By Helmut Schmidt
Helmut Schmidt is a business reporter at The Forum. He’s a German import, arriving in the United States about a decade after the Volkswagen beetle. After graduating high school in Cottage Grove, Minn., he served in the U.S. Army as a microwave radio operator and repairman. He earned a journalism degree from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, then started at the Albert Lea Tribune in southeastern Minnesota, where he served three years as its managing editor. At The Forum, he has covered various beats, including K-12 schools, city government, cops and courts, and the business community. Contact Helmut at 701-241-5583 or hschmidt@forumcomm.com.
