The main lender of the Banyan Cay hotel, residential and golf project in West Palm Beach wants to be declared the winning bidder for the 200-acre property in bankruptcy court, the South Florida Business Journal reported. Denver-based Westside Investment Partners won the bankruptcy auction for the property with a $102.1 million bid in June. However, it wasn’t able to complete the transaction and the deal fell through in July. The bidding procedures recognized Westside as the stalking-horse bidder and the main lender as the backup bidder, based on its credit bid. On Aug. 9, the main lender, U.S. Real Estate Credit Holdings, in care of El Segundo, California-based Calmwater Capital, filed a motion to amend the sale order so it is declared the winner of the auction based on its $96.9 million credit bid. There were no other bids at the auction, according to court documents. “The debtors’ sale process failed,” U.S. Real Estate stated in its motion. “The debtors now lack funding to insure, maintain and otherwise preserve the collateral [property], pay employees and fund operations. Lender has offered to fund operations and agreed-upon professional fees related to closing to preserve what value is left in the property, have an orderly transition of the property to lender, allow ongoing vendors to be paid, and to otherwise do the things the debtors have been unable, or unwilling, to do to prevent further diminution in value and harm to the property.” U.S. Real Estate said that the debtor, Banyan Cay Resort & Golf LLC, should cease marketing the property for sale and complete the auction process with its credit bid as the winning bid. It seeks to close on or before Aug. 31.
