West, member of UCD steering committees says: “Of course, Penn can't do anything else with the property either in the meantime. In that case, the property would just sit there abandoned for a spell longer.”
West expresses his fear: “But I greatly fear the reason the mansion was expanded horizontally into a nursing home 30-odd years ago, was because there was no commercial way to make a building of that age and size pay for its own upkeep even then. Has anything changed since to make it practical today?” Tony, do you think those 17 or 18 Penn Department chiefs are idiots or are they tools of the anti-christ? I’m so frightened because that location could never interest anyone if our salvation, Campus Inn, changed their mind and saved another neighborhood. Here are some inspiring words to give you comfort. These words help to calm my fears: Dr. Goebbels says: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.” -----Original Message----- >From: Anthony West <[email protected]> >Sent: Dec 22, 2008 5:27 PM >To: UnivCity listserv <[email protected]> >Subject: Re: [UC] Not bankruptcy, but inability to get the money for the >project > >NPR reported this also today. So the hotel industry may indeed be the >next to bite the bullet. If so, then we may not see much hotel-building >on 40th St. or anywhere else next year. > >Of course, Penn can't do anything else with the property either in the >meantime. In that case, the property would just sit there abandoned for >a spell longer. > >When credit comes back again, Penn would surely try to do something with >the site again and take another spin on the wheel. Who knows if Hilton >would still be interested, or who else might be? > >-- Tony West > >> I don't think that the wonderful folks who want to ruin the visual >> aesthetics and overall ambience of our neighborhood with a >> cheesy-looking monstrosity of a hotel at 40th & Pine are headed for >> bankruptcy (assuming, that is, they don't have massive debt from other >> projects coming due). But I think there's a serious question as to >> whether they can get their paws on the money it will take to carry >> through the project, despite what may have been the outlook when this >> whole messy business began, owing to the economic malaise now worrying >> apparently everyone but Tom Lussenhop (who probably doesn't money to >> worry about, which may be why he's so dogged about getting this moving). >> >> As an indication of what I mean, here's an article that appeared in >> today's Wall Street Journal. Synopsis, if you don't want to read all >> the long, boring passages ... there's no money for real estate >> development these days. Period. >> >> If Campus Apts & company have the money already committed and locked >> up, let them give us proof that it's sitting there ready to be spent >> on the project. >> >> Al Krigman >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------ >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------ >> ** >> *Developers Ask U.S. for Bailout as Massive Debt Looms* >> *by Lingling Wei and Jon Hilsenrath* >> >> With a record amount of commercial real-estate debt coming due, some >> of the country's biggest property developers have become the latest to >> go hat-in-hand to the government for assistance. >> >> They're warning policymakers that thousands of office complexes, >> hotels, shopping centers and other commercial buildings are headed >> into defaults, foreclosures and bankruptcies. The reason: according to >> research firm Foresight Analytics LCC, $530 billion of commercial >> mortgages will be coming due for refinancing in the next three years >> -- with about $160 billion maturing in the next year. Credit, >> meanwhile, is practically nonexistent and cash flows from commercial >> property are siphoning off. >> >> Unlike home loans, which borrowers repay after a set period of time, >> commercial mortgages usually are underwritten for five, seven or 10 >> years with big payments due at the end. At that point, they typically >> need to be refinanced. A borrower's inability to refinance could force >> it to give up the property to the lender. >> >> A recent letter sent to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, and signed >> by a dozen real-estate trade groups, painted a bleak scenario: "Right >> now, we believe there is insufficient systemic capacity to refinance >> expiring, performing commercial real-estate loans," said the letter. >> "For many borrowers, [credit] simply is not available," the letter noted. >> > > >---- >You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the >list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see ><http://www.purple.com/list.html>. ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>.
