Wedding photographers buying bankrupt historic Furber Farm venue in Cottage Grove for over $2.2M

Owners of a bankrupt wedding and event center in Cottage Grove have agreed to sell the property for $2.24 million to a pair of Minnesota wedding photographers.

The Historic John P. Furber Farm filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June, the second wedding venue owned by Wayne and Angela Butt to encounter financial woes this year. The Butts’ Circle B wedding barn in Isanti abruptly closed in April, leaving several couples with cancelled nuptials and no refunds.

The Butts have agreed to sell the Cottage Grove property to a newly formed company owned by Brad and Louise Madison of Chisago City, court records filed last week show. The Madisons plan to continue running it as a wedding and event center.

“Louise and I have had a desire to open a wedding venue after working in the wedding industry as photographers,” Brad Madison said. “It’s just something we thought was a natural evolution.”

In June, the Furber Farm and an associated company owned by the Butts, GFY, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which allows businesses to continue operating while shielded from creditors’ claims. The property includes an 8,000-square-foot renovated 1940s dairy barn and a 3,000-square-foot addition.

Along with the $2.24 million property deal, the Madisons’ company would pay $50,000 for the Furber Farm’s business assets, court records say. The deal still needs bankruptcy court approval.

Brad and Louise Madison have been wedding photographers for a decade and own Mad Love Photography. They previously worked as theater actors, moving from New York City to Chisago City — Brad’s hometown — around 2012.

Brad and Louise, a native of Great Britain, had been looking at wedding venues to purchase, and Furber Farm hit the market at the right time.

“It really matched the vision of what we wanted,” Brad said.

Owning a venue could obviously boost the Madisons’ wedding photography business. But they said they would not require event center customers to use their photography services.

The Madisons said they will announce whether they retain the Furber Farm name after the deal closes. They declined to comment on financing.

Proceeds from the Furber Farm sale would pay off GFY’s primary secured creditor, Lake Elmo Bank, which has a $2.2 million claim on the wedding and event center alone.

The Madisons will not inherit the litigation liabilities that saddled the Butts’ Furber Farm.

This spring, a Dakota County judge ordered a $766,442 default judgement against GFY and Furber Farm, also holding Wayne and Angela Butt personally liable for the debt. The judgement stems from a breach of contract suit against GFY and Furber Farm by This Little Piggy Catering of Farmington.

The Butts bought the Furber Farm in 2010 and turned it into the wedding and event venue. They expanded in 2023 when they opened Circle B .

But in April, Circle B customers received emails saying the venue was permanently closed because of rising costs, a changing economy and competition from newer businesses.

Circle B has not filed for bankruptcy, federal court records indicate. But the Butts face eight lawsuits in state district court from Circle B customers claiming they lost deposits ranging from $4,357 to $9,077 when the wedding venue closed.