A buyer has yet to be found for the ae light metal casting plant, which the bankrupt company leases from the LaGrange Development Authority.

The German company, which makes aluminum die-cast parts for the auto industry, plans to close at the end of this month with 30 months to go on the lease.

Monthly lease payments of $37,000 have been used to pay off loans that financed construction of the 150,000-square-foot plant.

Unless a buyer can be found, the development authority would have to pay off the loans, which include $4.5 million from SunTrust and $1.5 million from the city of LaGrange.

The authority could attach a lien on the plant’s equipment, but the equipment also could end up being sold for personal property taxes. Two contractors have liens of $106,001 on the building.

The authority may give the company notice to remove the liens or else “we could look at action to attach the equipment if there’s not already a lien ahead of us,” authority attorney John Taylor said.

The development authority and company continue to try to find a buyer for what development authority Chairman Diethard Lindner called a “great building.”

“It’s an overbuilt building, but it’s built to good German standards,” Lindner said at Monday’s authority meeting. “It’s a wonderful building to have.”

Meanwhile, the new Sewon America plant, which will supply Kia Motors with stamped metal parts starting late this year, is about 90 percent complete.

An extension of Pegasus Parkway, part of phase one of the South Loop, goes past the Sewon plant and is expected to open to traffic in July. The existing Pegasus Parkway will be widened and the state Department of Transportation wants the city of LaGrange to relocate utilities off the state right of way at a cost of several hundred thousand dollars.

But “it will be a city and county road when the state completes it, so utility relocations will be unnecessary,” City Manger Tom Hall said.

Authority members said they hope common sense will prevail, but wouldn’t bet on it.

In other matters:

n The authority agreed to provide LaGrange-Callaway Airport with a two-year option on 43.5 acres adjacent to the airport for future development, provided the airport pays $1,000 for the option, plus survey costs.

n West Georgia Technical College has asked the development authority to foot the bill for putting its name on directional signs in the LaGrange Industrial park since the school’s new campus lies in the park.

Authority Secretary Jane Fryer said other companies paid about $300 for the privilege, although Sewon probably got its name on the two signs for free as part of an incentive package.

The development authority can no more afford the $300 cost than West Georgia Tech, said LaGrange Mayor Jeff Lukken, a member of the authority.

“We’ll offer them to pay for it,” Lindner said.

Joel Martin can be reached at jmartin@lagrangenews. com or at 706-884-7311, Ext. 235.