By EDWARD HUSAR

Herald-Whig Staff Writer

Quincy's Economic Development Loan Committee has tweaked the city's loan to Terry Traeder of TNT Golf Car & amp; Equipment Co. so he can acquire the former Geise Buick Pontiac property at 930 Maine and renovate it for the golf car business.

The committee in August approved a $475,000 loan. But after reviewing some updated information in closed session Tuesday, including a new appraisal of the property, the committee determined the city's participation need not be so high.

So the loan was reduced to $324,000, said Chuck Bevelheimer, Quincy's director of planning and development.

"It's still essentially the same loan," Bevelheimer said, but the city's participation is smaller.

Terms of the TNT contract call for the loan to be paid back over 10 years at 3 percent annual interest.

TNT moved to the Maine Street location a year ago from its former headquarters at Fourth and Hampshire, which was sold to Adams County to become the site of a new Health Department facility. The county paid $394,500 for the property, and the city of Quincy agreed to pay $128,500 to cover demolition work.

For the past year, TNT has been renting the former car dealership, which was home to Geise Buick Pontiac from 1960 until the business closed in 2006.

Also at Tuesday's meeting, the committee heard updates in closed session on the status of lawsuits the city filed to recover some assets from two $500,000 loans that have gone into default.

Both loans were issued in 2004 -- one to RegionsAir and the other to Quincy Polymers.

RegionsAir, formerly known as Corporate Airlines, still owes the city $398,280 and hasn't made a monthly payment since February 2007, about the time the airline was grounded by the U.S. Department of Transportation because of concerns about a continuing training program for pilots.

Until then, RegionsAir had been under contract to provide federally subsidized passenger air service between Quincy and St. Louis. The Illinois secretary of state's office subsequently revoked RegionsAir's corporate status in Illinois.

RegionsAir was issued the loan to buy some equipment as part of a plan to establish an aircraft-maintenance base at Quincy Regional Airport, which never materialized. Bevelheimer said Quincy officials are exploring efforts to recover some of the equipment, which may still be at the company's headquarters in Tennessee.

The lawsuit against Quincy Polymers and owner Kevin C. McGinnis was filed in August in Adams County Circuit Court. It claims loan payments haven't been made since early 2006. The lawsuit seeks repayment of the entire outstanding principal of $449,085, plus $31,743 in accumulated interest. The city also is seeking $4,490 for two annual service fees the company failed to pay in 2006 and 2007.

The city is asking the court to award it custody of the company's machinery, equipment, furniture and furnishings, which were offered as collateral for the loan. Bevelheimer said many of these assets are "still in place" and recovery options are being explored.

-- ehusar@whig.com/221-3378