Plews Shadley Racher & Braun LLP’s Real Estate and Transaction team of Chris Braun, Ali Sylvia, Todd Relue, and Andrea Townsend is pleased to announce the December 3, 2020, closing of client Jay Petroleum, Inc’s acquisition of 22 Party Mart® convenience stores in Ohio from Ottawa Oil Company, along with Ottawa’s fuel transportation, dealer sites, and consignment site operations. The PSRB team worked closely throughout the transaction with Jay Petroleum’s outstanding senior leadership team consisting of Ron Freeman, Kevin Huffman, Chris Braun and Joday Auker.

Before the acquisition, Jay Petroleum, founded in 1959 by James “Jim” Peterson, owned and operated 35 Pak-A-Sak convenience stores in Northern Indiana and Northwest Ohio. The acquisition of Ottawa Oil Company expands Jay Petroleum’s retail footprint to 57 convenience stores throughout Northern Indiana and Ohio. Jay Petroleum, which is an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan), will now have a combined employee team of over 725 individuals.

Throughout its 61-year history, Jay Petroleum has followed the traditional petroleum jobber model of fuel transportation, bulk lubricants, TBA, and dealer operations. For the past 30 plus years, the company’s primary focus has been on the growth of its convenience store presence through Pak-A-Sak. The 35-store chain has a strong foodservice emphasis through brands such as Subway, Taco Bell, and Papa John’s Pizza.

PSRB served as Jay Petroleum’s counsel to secure bank loan financing for the acquisition of Ottawa’s stations and related businesses and worked with Jay Petroleum’s outside environmental consultant, Creek Run Environmental, to address various environmental issues.

Chris Braun, PSRB’s Managing Partner, has practiced law for more than 36 years and focuses on a variety of complex litigation, transactional, environmental and administrative matters.  Chris regularly represents members of the petroleum industry in transactions, litigation and environmental matters and has served as General Counsel to what is now known as the Indiana Food & Fuel Association since 1993.

Ali Sylvia chairs PSRB’s Real Estate Group and concentrates her practice in commercial real estate and business transactions, environmental counseling, health care/life sciences, and corporate finance. Her practice covers a range of complex commercial real estate transactions, including acquisitions and dispositions, commercial loan transactions and leasing of office, retail, industrial and mixed-use properties.

Todd Relue concentrates his practice in the areas of complex litigation, commercial real estate, corporate transactions, and education law, with an emphasis on representing municipal clients in environmental cost recovery actions.

Andrea Townsend focuses her practice in the areas of environmental law and landowner liability, commercial real estate, insurance coverage, complex litigation, and business law. Andrea regularly assists clients with all aspects of environmental matters, including due diligence investigation, compliance, cleanups, cost-recovery actions, and Brownfield redevelopment.

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