If the media reports are to be believed, the contractor is only owed $5.5 million on a hotel that was projected to cost $55 million. So it's really not that much in the grand scheme of things. But that's why it is so mind boggling that they don't figure out a way to pay off the contractor.
Couldn't the LLC take out a loan and give the lender priority and a security interest? As risky as a ski area loan is, I wouldn't mind being first in line with a secured loan of $5.5 million on a hotel that is worth many millions more. Unless the bank thinks that there really wouldn't be any serious buyers if the hotel went up for foreclosure. In that case, that ought to tell you something about the confidence in the resort.
Or if they know that an official commercial valuation of a non-operating building and real estate will be well south of $55M.