Wells Fargo Bank is asking Spokane County Superior Court to appoint a receiver to take control of seven convenience stores, including four in the Spokane area, operated by Yakima-based Maid OClover Corp. In a separate action, the bank also is in the process of foreclosing on the stores.


The request for appointment of a receiver came in a lawsuit that the bank recently filed against Maid OClover Corp. and two related companies, alleging that they defaulted on a promissory note late last year.


According to the suit, Wells Fargo is the holder of the $6.7 million note, which was made to Amresco Commercial Lending Corp. by the Maid O Clover companies in November 1997. In addition to Maid OClover Corp., the other two defendants named in the suit are Maid OClover South Inc. and Maid OClover East Inc.


The lawsuit seeks to have a receiver take control of four convenience stores in the Spokane area, two in Yakima, and one in Wenatchee, Wash. The Maid OClover companies granted Amresco a deed of trust for each of those properties to secure the note, the suit contends. The four properties here are located at 909 N. Division, 2103 W. Northwest Blvd., 2005 N. Hamilton, and 1418 S. Garfield Road, in Airway Heights.


Spokane attorney Ian Ledlin, whos representing Wells Fargo in the suit, says the foreclosure action was started before the suit was filed and is separate from the lawsuit.


Maid OClover operates other convenience stores here, although those properties arent included in the lawsuit, Ledlin says. Guy Loudon, a Maid OClover principal, says the chain currently operates 20 convenience stores, but only seven are facing foreclosure.


The deeds of trust that were used to secure the note give the bank a security interest in all revenues and profits from the properties, as well as from the leaseholds on the properties. The deeds also provide that a receiver could be appointed to operate, manage, and improve the properties and conduct business at the stores in the event of a default, the suit says.


Last December, Wells Fargo sent a notice of default to the Maid OClover companies, demanding payment of nearly $81,000 to cure the default. The default wasnt cured, however, and in January, Wells Fargo sent another notice to the companies, demanding payment of all amounts due and payable, which totaled about $8.1 million, according to the suit. The suit says Maid OClover has paid nothing so far, and interest on that amount is accruing at the rate of about $1,400 a day.