Intrawest assets seized by lenders
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Lenders have seized the assets of Intrawest ULC, including the Whistler ski resort that will be home to the Olympic downhill races next month, sparking uncertainty about whether the Games will still be held on the property. A public notice has been posted in newspapers by the company’s lenders saying that an auction to sell the assets will be held on Feb. 19, right in the midst of the Olympics. Vancouver-based Intrawest, which is owned by private equity firm Fortress Investment Group LLC, reportedly missed payments last month that were due on a US$1.4-billion loan. The group of lenders, which includes Lehman Brothers and Davidson Kempner hope for a speedy sale of Intrawest in one transaction. The public auction notice stated that “Each qualified bidder must be a financial institution or other entity that has the financial wherewithal to purchase the membership interests in immediately available funds on the closing date.” The sale includes more than a dozen resort properties including Mont Tremblant in Quebec, Steamboat and Winter Park in Colorado and Squaw Valley in California.
