A legal battle continues over the future of the building that houses Clifton Market.
An attorney for WesBanco Bank told Hamilton County Magistrate Stacey Piepmeier Wednesday that the lenders will pursue summary judgment in a foreclosure action against Gurmukh and Genet Singh for the Clifton Market building and three residential properties also in Clifton.
That would allow the bank to foreclose without a full trial. The lenders also are considering pursuing a receiver for the properties, according to their attorney, who said it's not clear if the building is currently insured.
WesBanco alleges the Singhs owe more than $350,000 on four mortgages, including one originally worth $1.6 million on the Clifton Market building. The lender claims the Singhs are behind on payments on those loans.
How did Clifton Market get here?
In a 2024, the bank sought foreclosure of the properties in Warren County, where the Singhs reside.
The action involved multiple loans on the Clifton properties. A Warren County judge issued a certificate of judgement against the Singhs, but WesBanco filed to have that certificate released in April 2025, after the two parties apparently came to an agreement.
A subsequent foreclosure filing in Hamilton County Court in November last year by WesBanco alleged the couple still were delinquent on payments on those mortgages and moved for foreclosure sale of the properties.
In a response filed in late January seeking dismissal of the foreclosure proceedings, the Singhs said they've made $900,000 in payments to the bank to bring their mortgages current.
But the lender says the couple are still behind on payments. Gurmukh Singh was present at the Wednesday hearing. The Singhs say they have retained an attorney and are slated to meet with him soon.
Singh has acknowledged struggles with Clifton Market and attributed a lack of product there to the closure of some of the market's distributors. He's also said recent health concerns have made things difficult.
Last week, the Market posted a statement to its Facebook page that has since been taken down.
"The downturn in Clifton Market was triggered by Laurel Wholesellers unexpectedly shutting down and conducting a mass layoff of employees in April 2025," the statement read. "This left us and countless other independent grocers throughout the Midwest and Southeast regions of the US scrambling to find suppliers who could: stock our shelves at an appropriate price point, provide us with the product offerings our customers desire, make regular deliveries, and offer credit terms that allow an independent grocery store to thrive in a low margin and highly competitive industry."
There have been financial issues stores Singh has run in Oberlin and Ross as well, according to media reports and former employees.
Magistrate Piepmeier set the next pretrial conference in the foreclosure suit for May 13.
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