Foxley Farm, long at the center of legal battles for operating commercially in a residentially zoned area of Ligonier Township, has been foreclosed upon for failure by its owners to pay the mortgage on the 59-acre property.

Enterprise Bank last week also filed more than $3 million in judgements against property owners, Margaret and Paul Nied. The Allison Park bank said the couple is delinquent in repayment of small-business loans secured in 2011, along with additional fees for unpaid interest and penalties.

The legal actions filed in Westmoreland County come at a time when the Nieds are seeking to invalidate a 2015 court ruling that found them in violation of a consent order for hosting events such as weddings at the scenic property.

“This is a result of the still-pending claims,” Ryan Cooney, a lawyer for the Nieds, said about the bank’s court filings.

According to court documents, the Nieds have failed to repay two small-business loans for the purchase and operation of Foxley Farm — one of about $2.9 million and another of more than $88,000. The couple’s inability to operate the farm as a business led to their financial problems with the bank, Cooney said.

In another filing, the bank wants to take possession of the property, alleging the Nieds have failed to pay the monthly mortgage.

The Nieds, township officials and neighbors have sparred in court for several years over the commercial operations at the farm.

The township had contended that weddings, banquets and other commercial activities are not allowed under the property’s residential zoning. In 2013, local officials signed a consent order with the Nieds allowing them to host a limited number of events that had already been scheduled before ceasing operation.

The following year, the township and neighbors who had complained about the business, filed a contempt petition saying the couple had violated the order by scheduling additional events.

Last year, Westmoreland County Judge Christopher Feliciani found the Nieds in violation of the consent decree. An appeal is pending before the Commonwealth Court.

Meanwhile, the Nieds have sued their former lawyers, the township and neighbors for civil rights violations.

Another county judge last year dismissed from the lawsuit the township and the group of neighbors that had fought against zoning changes that would have allowed Foxley Farm to operate as a business.

The Nieds’ former lawyers — and current township attorneys — Scott Avolio and Michael Korns remain defendants in the civil rights lawsuit.

The Nieds contend Avolio and Korns represented them in an unsuccessful effort to have local zoning laws changed but later resigned to work for the township.

For the past year, Foxley Farm has halted hosting events, Cooney said. It’s a decision that Cooney said resulted in the Nieds being unable to repay their loans and led to the most recent court filings.

“When my clients purchased the property, they anticipated they would be able to repay the loans from proceeds of the commercial events,” Cooney said. “My clients were significantly harmed by the zoning ordinance in Ligonier Township, which is selectively enforced to the detriment to my clients.”

Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-830-6293 or rcholodofsky@tribweb.com.

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