Taubman Rejects Simon Offer

Taubman Centers Inc., a real estate investment trust based in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., has rejected an unsolicited offer by Simon Property Group Inc., an Indianapolis-based REIT, to acquire Taubman for $17.50 per share in cash."The Taubman Centers board of directors has unanimously rejected this proposal," the board said. "In addition, the Taubman family has informed the board that it is categorically opposed to the sale of the company." In a letter to the Taubman board dated Nov. 13, Simon chief executive officer David Simon criticized the Taubman family's refusal to consider the offer, arguing that it prevents public shareholders from "choosing to receive a premium" for their shares. "Mr. Taubman apparently believes the Taubman family is not accountable to the public shareholders because of the family's claimed blocking position -- via the Series B preferred stock -- which was surreptitiously issued in a 'restructuring' transaction many years after the Company's initial public offering without either proper disclosure or a shareholder vote," Mr. Simon said. The REITs can be found online at http://www.taubman.com and http://www.simon.com.