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Sunday, February 21, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Whistler Auction Averted
According to Reuters creditors agreed to postpone a foreclosure auction scheduled for tomorrow of the Whistler-Blacomb Ski Area, site of this year's winter Olympics alpine events. Fortress Investments which acquired the resort in a 2006 leveraged buyout, missed a $524 million payment due last December on a loan of $1.7 billion. The auction has been reset for February 26. Among the expected bidders, Vail Resorts, whose ski holdings include Vail, Breckenridge, and Heavenly Valley.
Fortunes for Fortress have plunged since its acquisition of Intrawest. Its stock closed at $4.20 today down from around $35 when the purchase of Intrawest was completed. Meanwhile, Joe Houssian, founder and former CEO of Intrawest, escaped with an estimated $133 million profit from the sale of his company's stock to Fortress. He is now a principal in Vancouver, BC based private equity firm, Intracorp Capital. Houssian is also involved in several green energy ventures and the real estate development and management company, Replay.
Fortunes for Fortress have plunged since its acquisition of Intrawest. Its stock closed at $4.20 today down from around $35 when the purchase of Intrawest was completed. Meanwhile, Joe Houssian, founder and former CEO of Intrawest, escaped with an estimated $133 million profit from the sale of his company's stock to Fortress. He is now a principal in Vancouver, BC based private equity firm, Intracorp Capital. Houssian is also involved in several green energy ventures and the real estate development and management company, Replay.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Whistler Could Go on the Auction Block During the Olympics
According to the Toronto Globe and Mail Whistler/Blackomb Ski Area's creditors could put the Canadian resort on the auction block in the middle of this month's Winter Olympics. Fortress Investments, a private equity and hedge fund, acquired the resort in a leveraged buyout of Intrawest in 2006 for a reported $2.8 billion including existing debt. Fortress borrowed $1.7 billion to close the deal. Intrawest/Fortress missed a $524 million payment in December after receiving a 2 month payment extension and its creditors, which include Lehmen Brothers, began foreclosure proceedings.
In 2006, at the time of the acquisition, real estate was nearing its peak. Since then values have plummeted along with real estate sales forcing Intrawest to try to service it's debt through resort operations. An impossible task. As a result Intrawest has been shedding lesser properties to reduce debt in an effort to hang onto key resorts like Whistler, Mont Tremblant and Blue Mountain in Ontario. Among the departed Panorama in B.C., Copper Mountain in Colorado and the Village at Squaw Valley, California. Even the remnants of Intrawest's Mammoth holdings-- two Altis townhomes, one Woodwinds condo and a few Westin units--have been reduced for clearance. Will this be enough to stave off foreclosure? Without major debt restructuring or bankruptcy, probably not. But I think the Games will go on without a hint of disruption.
In 2006, at the time of the acquisition, real estate was nearing its peak. Since then values have plummeted along with real estate sales forcing Intrawest to try to service it's debt through resort operations. An impossible task. As a result Intrawest has been shedding lesser properties to reduce debt in an effort to hang onto key resorts like Whistler, Mont Tremblant and Blue Mountain in Ontario. Among the departed Panorama in B.C., Copper Mountain in Colorado and the Village at Squaw Valley, California. Even the remnants of Intrawest's Mammoth holdings-- two Altis townhomes, one Woodwinds condo and a few Westin units--have been reduced for clearance. Will this be enough to stave off foreclosure? Without major debt restructuring or bankruptcy, probably not. But I think the Games will go on without a hint of disruption.
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