Developer Wins State Approval to Purchase Progressive S

Anaheim developer James A. Carter has won state approval to purchase a financially troubled Alhambra savings and loan, leaving only the S&L;’s nearly 1,000 shareholders to approve the buy-out.

But shareholders of Progressive Savings & Loan Assn. will get a choice between Carter and an 11th-hour bidder, Van Greenfield and his Greenfield Partners, a New York investment firm, Progressive Chairman Jim Hennis said.

Hennis said directors are not expected to state a preference on which deal they believe shareholders should accept. The stockholders will meet in early August.

Carter, who heads the Spruce Grove Inc. construction company, already has been cleared by federal regulators for his offer of about $6.4 million, or about $1.50 a share, for all the outstanding stock in the S&L.;

Greenfield has not been approved by any regulators yet. He is proposing to buy a controlling interest in the S&L; by paying $10 million for newly issued stock.

Carter said previously that he plans to pump up to $9 million in new capital into the institution after he acquires it. He also said his agreement with the board gives him the right to match any other bid, making Greenfield’s deal “moot.”

The S&L; had $525.5 million in assets at the end of last year but had nearly exhausted its capital. It lost $7.1 million in 1984 and another $2.3 million last year.