EX-2.1 2 d455308dex21.htm EX-2.1 EX-2.1

Exhibit 2.1

AMENDMENT

TO

AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF MERGER

This AMENDMENT (this “Amendment”) to the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of April 2, 2023 (the “Merger Agreement”), by and among EXTRA SPACE STORAGE INC., a Maryland corporation (“Parent”), EXTRA SPACE STORAGE LP, a Delaware limited partnership (“Parent OP”), EROS MERGER SUB, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent (“Extra Space Merger Sub”), EROS OP MERGER SUB, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent OP (“Extra Space OP Merger Sub” and, together with Parent, Parent OP and Extra Space Merger Sub, the “Parent Parties”), LIFE STORAGE, INC., a Maryland corporation (the “Company”), and LIFE STORAGE LP, a Delaware limited partnership (the “Partnership” and, together with the Company, the “Company Parties”), is made and entered into as of May 18, 2023, by the Parent Parties and the Company Parties. Parent, Parent OP, Extra Space Merger Sub, Extra Space OP Merger Sub, the Company and the Partnership are each sometimes referred to herein as a “Party” and, collectively, as the “Parties”. Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the respective meanings ascribed to such terms in the Merger Agreement, as modified by this Amendment.

WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 9.5 of the Merger Agreement, the Merger Agreement may be amended by the Parties by an instrument in writing signed on behalf of each of the Parties, at any time before or after the Company Stockholder Approval or the Parent Stockholder Approval is obtained; and

WHEREAS, the Parties desire to amend the Merger Agreement to, among other things, (i) replace the top-up cash payment to be paid to certain holders of Company 2015 Plan Restricted Shares, (ii) remove the Parent Common Stock Election and the Preferred Unitholder Election, and (iii) make such other changes as are necessary or appropriate in light of the foregoing amendments.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing and the mutual covenants and agreements set forth herein and for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby acknowledged, and intending to be legally bound hereby, the Parties hereto do hereby agree as follows:

 

1.

Amendments to Recitals.

 

  1.1.

Clause (c) of the first WHEREAS recital is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

(c) immediately following the effectiveness of the LLC Conversions, Parent shall contribute to Parent OP all of the membership interests in the Surviving Entity in exchange for equity interests in Parent OP pursuant to the Contribution and Issuance, as more fully described in this Agreement and on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in this Agreement;

  1.2.

The proviso at the end of the second WHEREAS recital is hereby deleted in its entirety.

 

  1.3.

The third WHEREAS recital is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

WHEREAS, as of the date of this Amendment, there are no 4.5% Series A Preferred Limited Partnership Units of the Partnership (the “Series A Preferred Units”) outstanding;

 

  1.4.

The eighth WHEREAS recital is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

WHEREAS, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, it is intended that (a) Parent’s acquisition of the Company Common Stock pursuant to the Company Merger and the Deemed Liquidation (as defined below) be integrated, and that the Company Merger and the Deemed Liquidation, taken together, shall qualify as a “reorganization” within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”); and (b) the Partnership Merger will be treated as an “assets-over” partnership merger transaction under Treasury Regulations Sections 1.708-1(c)(1) and 1.708-1(c)(3)(i); and

 

2.

Amendment to Section 1.1. The following definition is hereby added to Section 1.1 of the Merger Agreement:

“Minority Limited Partner” means a holder of Partnership OP Units other than the Company or any wholly owned Company Subsidiary.

 

3.

Amendment to Section 2.1(c)(i). Section 2.1(c)(i) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Immediately after the effectiveness of the LLC Conversions, Parent, its applicable Subsidiaries and the Surviving Entity shall cause the contribution (the “Contribution”) of all of the outstanding equity interests of the Surviving Entity to Parent OP in exchange for the issuance by Parent OP to Parent or its applicable Subsidiaries (as Parent shall direct) of a number of newly issued Parent OP Units equal to the aggregate number of shares of Parent Common Stock to be issued in the Company Merger (the “Issuance”). As a result of the Contribution, the Surviving Entity shall become a direct wholly owned subsidiary of Parent OP.

4.

Amendment to Section 2.5. Section 2.5 of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Transaction Structure. Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, the Company Parties shall cooperate with and agree to any reasonable changes requested by Parent solely regarding the structure or steps of the transactions contemplated by this Article II (such cooperation shall include entering into appropriate amendments to this Agreement to reflect such reasonable changes) (the “Requested Changes”); provided that (a) any such Requested Changes would not reasonably be expected to have an adverse effect on the Company or any Company Subsidiary or the holders of the Company Common Stock, Partnership OP Units, Series A Preferred Units or Company Equity Awards, including any change to the form or amount of consideration to be received by holders of the Company Common Stock, Partnership OP Units, Series A Preferred Units or any Company Equity Awards, (b) none of the Requested Changes shall delay or prevent the Closing, (c) any amendments required to implement the Requested Changes must be made in accordance with Section 9.5, (d) none of the Company, the Partnership or any of their Subsidiaries (including all Company Subsidiaries) shall be required to take any action in contravention of any Laws, its organizational documents or any Company Material Contract, (e) the implementation of any such Requested Changes shall be contingent upon the receipt by the Company of a written notice from Parent confirming that all of the conditions set forth in Article VIII, other than such conditions that are to be satisfied at the Closing and the condition set forth in Section 8.1(a), have been satisfied (or, at the option of Parent, waived) and that the Parent Parties are prepared to proceed promptly following receipt of the approvals set forth in Section 8.1(a) with the Closing and any other evidence reasonably requested by the Company that the Closing will occur, (f) the Requested Changes (or the inability to complete the Requested Changes) shall not affect or modify in any respect the obligations of the Parent Parties under this Agreement, including payment of any consideration hereunder, (g) neither the Company nor any Company Subsidiary shall be required to take any such action that could adversely affect the classification of the Company as, or its qualification for taxation as, a REIT, and (h) neither the Company nor any Company Subsidiary shall be required to take any such action that would reasonably be expected to result in an amount of Taxes that are incrementally greater or more adverse than the Taxes which would be imposed on such person in the absence of the Requested Changes being imposed on, or other adverse Tax consequences to, any stockholder or other equity interest holder of the Company or the Partnership (in such person’s capacity as a stockholder or other equity interest holder of the Company or the Partnership), unless such holders are indemnified by the Parent Parties for such incremental Taxes. Parent shall, upon request by the Company or the Partnership, pay or assume all reasonable out-of-pocket costs incurred or to be incurred by the

Company or the Partnership in connection with any actions taken by the Company or the Partnership in accordance with this Section 2.5 (including reasonable fees and expenses of their Representatives). The Parent Parties, on a joint and several basis, hereby agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, the Partnership, their Subsidiaries (including all Company Subsidiaries), and their Representatives from and against any and all liabilities, losses, damages, claims, costs, expenses, interest, awards, judgments and penalties suffered or incurred by them in connection with or as a result of taking such actions in the event that the Mergers are not consummated. Without limiting the foregoing, none of the representations, warranties or covenants of the Company Parties shall be deemed to apply to, or deemed breached or violated by, any of the Requested Changes.

 

5.

Amendments to Section 3.1(b).

 

  5.1.

Section 3.1(b)(iv) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Conversion of Minority Limited Partner-Held Partnership OP Units. At the Partnership Merger Effective Time, by virtue of the Partnership Merger and without any further action on the part of Parent OP, Extra Space OP Merger Sub, the Partnership or the holders of Partnership OP Units or Series A Preferred Units, each Partnership OP Unit held by a Minority Limited Partner that is issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Partnership Merger Effective Time shall automatically be converted into validly issued Parent OP Units in Parent OP (“New Parent OP Units”) in an amount equal to (x) one (1), multiplied by (y) the Exchange Ratio (rounded up to the nearest whole New Parent OP Unit), and each holder of New Parent OP Units shall be admitted as a limited partner of Parent OP. No fractional New Parent OP Units will be issued in the Partnership Merger. In accordance with the DRULPA and the Parent Partnership Agreement, each Minority Limited Partner who receives New Parent OP Units shall be admitted to Parent OP as a limited partner, and shall be bound by the provisions of the Parent Partnership Agreement, notwithstanding that such Minority Limited Partner may not have executed the Parent Partnership Agreement. Promptly after the Partnership Merger Effective Time, Parent OP shall deliver to each Minority Limited Partner entitled to receive New Parent OP Units pursuant to the terms of this Section 3.1(b)(iv), a notice confirming such Minority Limited Partner’s record ownership of the New Parent OP Units issuable pursuant hereto.

 

  5.2.

Section 3.1(b)(v) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted in its entirety and such subsection is reserved.

  5.3.

Section 3.1(b)(vi) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted in its entirety and such subsection is reserved.

 

6.

Amendments to Section 3.3.

 

  6.1.

Section 3.3(a) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Exchange Agent. Not less than five (5) days prior to the dissemination of the joint proxy statement/prospectus in definitive form relating to the Company Stockholder Meeting, the Parent Stockholder Meeting and the issuance of Parent Common Stock in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement (together with any amendments or supplements thereto, the “Proxy Statement/Prospectus”), Parent shall appoint a bank or trust company reasonably satisfactory to the Company to act as exchange agent (the “Exchange Agent”) for the payment and delivery of the Merger Consideration and the Fractional Share Consideration, as provided in Section 3.1(a)(ii) and Section 3.8. On or before the Company Merger Effective Time, Parent shall deposit, or cause to be deposited, with the Exchange Agent (i) a number of shares of Parent Common Stock equal to the aggregate Merger Consideration in book-entry form issuable by Parent pursuant to Section 3.1(a)(ii), and (ii) cash in immediately available funds in an amount sufficient to pay the aggregate Fractional Share Consideration payable pursuant to Section 3.8. Parent shall deposit or cause to be deposited with the Exchange Agent, as necessary from time to time following the Company Merger Effective Time, any dividends or other distributions, if any, to which a holder of shares of Company Common Stock may be entitled pursuant to Section 3.3(e). Such book-entry shares of Parent Common Stock, aggregate Fractional Share Consideration and the amounts of any dividends or other distributions deposited with the Exchange Agent pursuant to this Section 3.3(a) are collectively referred to in this Agreement as the “Exchange Fund.” The Exchange Fund shall be for the sole benefit of the holders of shares of Company Common Stock that were outstanding as of immediately prior to the Company Merger Effective Time. Parent shall cause the Exchange Agent to make, and the Exchange Agent shall make, delivery of the Merger Consideration and payment of the Fractional Share Consideration and any amounts payable in respect of dividends or other distributions on shares of Parent Common Stock in accordance with Section 3.3(e) out of the Exchange Fund in accordance with this Agreement. The Exchange Fund shall not be used for any other purpose.

  6.2.

Section 3.3(e) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Dividends with Respect to Parent Common Stock. No dividends or other distributions with respect to Parent Common Stock with a record date after the Company Merger Effective Time shall be paid to the holder of any unsurrendered Certificate or to any Book-Entry Share for which the Exchange Agent has not paid and delivered the Merger Consideration pursuant to Section 3.3(d), in each case with respect to the shares of Parent Common Stock issuable to such holder hereunder. All such dividends and other distributions with respect to the shares of Parent Common Stock issuable to any such holder hereunder in accordance with this Agreement shall be paid by Parent to the Exchange Agent and shall be included in the Exchange Fund, in each case until the surrender of such Certificate (or affidavit of loss in lieu thereof) or payment and delivery of the Merger Consideration with respect to such Book-Entry Share. Subject to applicable Laws, following surrender of any such Certificate (or affidavit of loss in lieu thereof) or the conversion of such Book-Entry Share, there shall be paid to the holder thereof, without interest, (i) the amount of dividends or other distributions with a record date after the Company Merger Effective Time theretofore paid with respect to such shares of Parent Common Stock to which such holder is entitled pursuant to this Agreement, and (ii) at the appropriate payment date, the amount of dividends or other distributions with a record date after the Company Merger Effective Time but prior to such surrender and with a payment date subsequent to such surrender payable with respect to such shares of Parent Common Stock.

 

  6.3.

Section 3.3(f) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted in its entirety and such subsection is reserved.

 

  6.4.

Section 3.3(g) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Termination of Exchange Fund. Any portion of the Exchange Fund (including any Fractional Share Consideration and any applicable dividends or other distributions with respect to Parent Common Stock) which remains undistributed to the holders of shares of Company Common Stock for six (6) months after the Company Merger Effective Time shall be delivered to Parent, upon demand, and any former holders of shares of Company Common Stock prior to the Company Merger who have not theretofore complied with this Article III shall thereafter look only to Parent and only as general creditors thereof for payment of the Merger Consideration subject to the terms and conditions of this Article III.

7.

Amendments to Section 4.3(j).

 

  7.1.

The second sentence of Section 4.3(j) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

As of March 31, 2023, the Company OP GP owned approximately 1% of the Partnership OP Units.

 

  7.2.

The following sentence is added to the end of Section 4.3(j) of the Merger Agreement:

As of the date of the Amendment, no Series A Preferred Units are outstanding.

 

8.

Amendment to Section 6.1(b). Clause (iii) of Section 6.1(b) is hereby deleted in its entirety and such clause is reserved.

 

9.

Amendment to Section 6.2. Clause (i) of the final paragraph of Section 6.2 is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Parent from taking any action, at any time or from time to time, that in the reasonable judgment of Parent Board, upon advice of outside counsel to Parent, is reasonably necessary for Parent or any Parent Subsidiary REIT to avoid or to continue to avoid incurring entity level income or excise Taxes under the Code or to maintain its qualification as a REIT under the Code for any period or portion thereof ending on or prior to the Company Merger Effective Time, including making dividend or other distribution payments to stockholders of Parent or such Parent Subsidiary REIT, as applicable, in accordance with this Agreement or otherwise, or to qualify or preserve the status of Parent OP or any other Parent Subsidiary as a disregarded entity or partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes or as a Qualified REIT Subsidiary, a Taxable REIT Subsidiary or REIT under the applicable provisions of Section 856 of the Code, as the case may be;

 

10.

Amendment to Section 7.8(d). Section 7.8(d) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Without limiting the generality of Section 7.8(a), (i) cash incentive bonuses for calendar year 2023 shall be treated as set forth in Section 7.8(d)(i) of the Company Disclosure Schedule, and (ii) no later than five (5) days prior to the Company Merger Effective Time, the Company shall take the actions specified in Section 7.8(d)(ii) of the Company Disclosure Schedule.

11.

Amendment to Section 7.9(a). Section 7.9(a) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

The Parties intend that for U.S. federal income tax purposes (i) immediately after the Company Merger, the Company shall become a Qualified REIT Subsidiary pursuant to Section 856(i) of the Code and as a result the Company shall be deemed to distribute all of its assets to Parent pursuant to a complete liquidation and will be disregarded as separate from Parent for federal tax purposes (the “Deemed Liquidation”), (ii) Parent’s acquisition of the Company Common Stock pursuant to the Company Merger and the Deemed Liquidation be integrated, and that the Company Merger and the Deemed Liquidation, taken together, shall qualify as a “reorganization” within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the Code, (iii) that this Agreement be, and hereby is, adopted as a plan of reorganization for the Company Merger for purposes of Sections 354 and 361 of the Code and (iv) that the Partnership Merger be treated as an “assets-over” partnership merger transaction under Treasury Regulations Sections 1.708-1(c)(1) and 1.708-1(c)(3)(i).

 

12.

Amendment to Section 7.13(a). The proviso to clause (i) of Section 7.13(a) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

provided, however, no such amendment shall increase the Merger Consideration payable pursuant to Article III or amend the definition of Change in Control Price;

 

13.

Amendment to Section 7.19(d). Section 7.19(d) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

Parent shall (i) promptly, upon request by the Company, pay or assume all reasonable and documented out-of-pocket costs and expenses payable to third parties (including advisor’s fees and expenses) incurred by the Company or any Company Subsidiary in connection with the cooperation provided or other action taken by Company or any Company Subsidiary pursuant to this Section 7.19 and (ii) indemnify and hold harmless the Company, the Company Subsidiaries and their respective officers, directors and other Representatives from and against any and all liabilities, losses, damages, claims, costs, expenses, interest, awards, judgments and penalties (collectively, “Losses”) suffered or incurred by them in connection with any such financing transaction or Note Offers and Consent Solicitations, any information utilized in connection therewith or any action taken by the Company or any Company Subsidiary pursuant to this Section 7.19; provided, however, that the foregoing indemnity shall not apply with respect to any Losses resulting from the gross negligence or Willful Breach of the Company or any Company Subsidiaries un-der this Agreement; provided further that the foregoing indemnity shall only become payable in the event that the Mergers are not consummated.

14.

Amendment to Section 8.2(c). Section 8.2(c) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

REIT Qualification Opinion. Parent shall have received a written tax opinion of Phillips Lytle (or such other nationally recognized REIT counsel as may be reasonably acceptable to Parent and the Company), substantially in the form of Exhibit D to this Agreement, dated as of the Closing Date, to the effect that, commencing with its taxable year ended December 31, 1995 and through the Company Merger Effective Time, the Company has been organized and operated in conformity with the requirements for qualification and taxation as a REIT under the Code (which opinion shall be based upon the representation letters described in Section 7.15(a)(ii) and subject to customary exceptions, assumptions and qualifications).

 

15.

Amendment to Section 8.3(d). Section 8.3(d) of the Merger Agreement is hereby deleted and replaced in its entirety with the following:

REIT Qualification Opinion. The Company shall have received a tax opinion of Latham & Watkins LLP (or such other nationally recognized REIT counsel as may be reasonably acceptable to Parent and the Company), substantially in the form of Exhibit F to this Agreement, dated as of the Closing Date, to the effect that commencing with Parent’s taxable year ended December 31, 2004, Parent has been organized and operated in conformity with the requirements for qualification and taxation as a REIT under the Code, and Parent’s proposed method of operation will enable Parent to continue to meet the requirements for qualification and taxation as a REIT under the Code for its taxable year that includes the Company Merger Effective Time and future taxable years (which opinion shall be based upon the representation letters described in Section 7.15(a)(ii) and Section 7.15(b)(ii) and subject to customary exceptions, assumptions and qualifications).

 

16.

No Other Amendments to the Merger Agreement.

 

  16.1.

On and after the date hereof, each reference in the Merger Agreement to “this Agreement,” “herein,” “hereof,” “hereunder” or words of similar import shall mean and be a reference to the Merger Agreement as amended hereby. Notwithstanding the foregoing, references to the date of the Merger Agreement, as amended hereby, shall in all instances continue to refer to April 2, 2023, references to “the date hereof” and “the date of this Agreement” shall continue to refer to April 2, 2023, and references to the date of the Amendment and “as of the date of the Amendment” shall refer to May 18, 2023.

  16.2.

Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, all of the terms and conditions of the Merger Agreement remain unchanged and continue in full force and effect. This Amendment is limited precisely as written and shall not be deemed to be an amendment to any other term or condition of the Merger Agreement or any of the documents referred to therein.

 

17.

Effect of Amendment. This Amendment shall form a part of the Merger Agreement for all purposes, and each party hereto and thereto shall be bound hereby. From and after the execution of this Amendment by the parties hereto, any reference to the Merger Agreement shall be deemed a reference to the Merger Agreement as amended hereby. This Amendment shall be deemed to be in full force and effect from and after the execution of this Amendment by the parties hereto.

 

18.

Governing Law. This Amendment shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal Laws of the State of Maryland without regard to its rules of conflict of laws.

 

19.

Counterparts. This Amendment may be executed in counterparts, all of which shall be considered one and the same agreement and shall become effective when one or more counterparts have been signed by each of the Parties and delivered to the other Party (including by means of electronic delivery). Facsimile and electronic .pdf transmission of any signed original document shall be deemed the same as delivery of an original.

 

20.

Headings. The headings contained in this Amendment are for reference purposes only and shall not affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of this Amendment.

[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have caused this Amendment to be executed and delivered as of the date first written above by their respective officers thereunto duly authorized.

 

EXTRA SPACE STORAGE INC.
By:  

/s/ Joseph D. Margolis

  Name: Joseph D. Margolis
  Title: Chief Executive Officer
EXTRA SPACE STORAGE LP
By:   ESS Holdings Business Trust I, its sole general partner
By:  

/s/ Joseph D. Margolis

  Name: Joseph D. Margolis
  Title: Trustee
EROS MERGER SUB, LLC
By:   Extra Space Storage Inc., its sole member
By:  

/s/ Joseph D. Margolis

  Name: Joseph D. Margolis
  Title: Chief Executive Officer
EROS OP MERGER SUB, LLC
By:   Extra Space Storage LP, its sole member
By:   ESS Holdings Business Trust I, its sole general partner
By:  

/s/ Joseph D. Margolis

  Name: Joseph D. Margolis
  Title: Trustee

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have caused this Amendment to be executed and delivered as of the date first written above by their respective officers thereunto duly authorized.

 

LIFE STORAGE, INC.
By:  

/s/ Joseph Saffire

  Name: Joseph Saffire
  Title: Chief Executive Officer
LIFE STORAGE LP
By:   Life Storage Holdings, Inc., its general partner
By:  

/s/ Joseph Saffire

  Name: Joseph Saffire
  Title: Chief Executive Officer