GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Green Bay’s city council voted late last night (TUE) to wait another 45 days before making another decision on the Hotel Northland project.
Green Bay Mayor Jim Schmitt asked council members to hold off on ordering a full financial audit. That’s because the hunt for financing continues for the $44 million project.
“I want to give you a comfort level, but I want you to also know I’m just as frustrated”
The Northland’s developer has spent all of 2017 trying to secure a new senior lender after the original bank pulled its $12.8 million in support.
The original top bank for the project pulled its loan because it said the developer had several loan defaults. The developer has denied that claim.
Keith Harenda, the developer, thought a new bank was lined up, but the loan request was denied.
Brigette Brietenbach is a project spokesperson.
“We believe it was due in part to some of the negative publicity, but we also believe it’s because it’s a very difficult loan for a regional bank to make for a half-built hotel”
The Northland owners have now hired Sonnenblick-Eichner Company, a California firm, to find a new senior lender. They say a third party feasibility study was conducted to help with the process.
“Those results came back in last week and in fact they did prove accurately that our Pro forma is sound and that they’re going to move forward with this,” said Brietenbach.
While the search continues for a new loan, work has virtually stopped on the hotel.
However, the hotel owners say they’re working with junior lenders to get subcontractors back to work as early as April 1st.
Council President Tom DeWane had requested the city conduct a third party audit of the project’s finances.
But he tells WLUK he’s good with waiting 45 more days before making a decision.
“Their third party study is what we’re basically waiting on. They said they’ll bring one. They’re going to bring something forward as soon as possible. We’ll look at that and decide. That’s part of the equation.”
Renovation work is said to be more than 70 percent complete. The goal is to finish this summer.
