Receiver Announces that Burke has a Stalking Horse Bid and Deal will Close by End of 2024

[thetrailboss]

Perhaps there was a big event going on at the conference facilities.

 

[drjeff]

I wonder if they are all skiing there actually. Anyone priced a room at Jay recently? Lot more than the mid 200s per night being bandied about in this thread so might be driving traffic to the Burke hotel?

The parents of one of my daughter's college ski team teammates told my wife and I that they were staying in the Tramhouse last Friday and Saturday night, for around $800 including 2 day lift tickets for each of them and 2 1 day passes to the Waterpark.

I was quoted about $1500 for the same 2 nights/2 2 day lift tickets but without the admission to the Waterpark when I looked at booking a 2 bedroom condo by the golf course for last weekend

 

[thetrailboss]

 

[BenedictGomez]

The parents of one of my daughter's college ski team teammates told my wife and I

Made me think of this scene.

 

[thetrailboss]

Who wants to buy Burke Mountain Resort?

The future of a Northeast Kingdom ski resort remains in limbo a decade after being caught up in the Kingdom Con. The long delay in finding a buyer for Burke Mountain Resort has people in the region wondering what’s going on.

www.wcax.com

 

[TyWebb]

Who wants to buy Burke Mountain Resort?

The future of a Northeast Kingdom ski resort remains in limbo a decade after being caught up in the Kingdom Con. The long delay in finding a buyer for Burke Mountain Resort has people in the region wondering what’s going on.

www.wcax.com

I haven't read this thread closely so no clue if it has been discussed and this is just a rumor but - skied Berkshire East yesterday and on two rides up in discussions with a pass holders/locals each said there are rumors of the Shaefer family (BE and Catamount owners) trying to purchase a mountain in Vt. Both times I said 'assume Burke right' and they said yes

 

[thetrailboss]

I haven't read this thread closely so no clue if it has been discussed and this is just a rumor but - skied Berkshire East yesterday and on two rides up in discussions with a pass holders/locals each said there are rumors of the Shaefer family (BE and Catamount owners) trying to purchase a mountain in Vt. Both times I said 'assume Burke right' and they said yes

Yes. That has been reported by multiple sources. That said, Jon told the Storm Podcast in 2024 that they were not interested. Who knows.....

 

[EPB]

Yes. That has been reported by multiple sources. That said, Jon told the Storm Podcast in 2024 that they were not interested. Who knows.....

I listened to that pod as well and my (potentially glass half full) read was that they didn't like Burke at the price they were being asked to pay - not the they didn't like the idea of owning Burke. I got the sense he was trying to delicately intimate that the trustee was being ridiculous with it's pricing ask.

 

[thetrailboss]

I listened to that pod as well and my (potentially glass half full) read was that they didn't like Burke at the price they were being asked to pay - not the they didn't like the idea of owning Burke. I got the sense he was trying to delicately intimate that the trustee was being ridiculous with it's pricing ask.

Well, as stated earlier in this thread, we know that there is at least one partner who offered the receiver $13 million or so for the "ski resort". It's not clear if that includes the Hotel or not.

 

[TyWebb]

Viable buyer found …

Receiver Says 'Viable Buyer' Found for Burke Mountain Resort

Michael I. Goldberg, the Florida lawyer leading the federal receivership controlling Burke Mountain Resort’s fate, said he has found a viable buyer and expects to offer a “significant update” on

www.northstarmonthly.com

 

[Edd]

Viable buyer found …

Receiver Says 'Viable Buyer' Found for Burke Mountain Resort

Michael I. Goldberg, the Florida lawyer leading the federal receivership controlling Burke Mountain Resort’s fate, said he has found a viable buyer and expects to offer a “significant update” on

www.northstarmonthly.com

Not much to chew on there.

 

[thetrailboss]

Viable buyer found …

Receiver Says 'Viable Buyer' Found for Burke Mountain Resort

Michael I. Goldberg, the Florida lawyer leading the federal receivership controlling Burke Mountain Resort’s fate, said he has found a viable buyer and expects to offer a “significant update” on

www.northstarmonthly.com

 

[thetrailboss]

Viable buyer found …

Receiver Says 'Viable Buyer' Found for Burke Mountain Resort

Michael I. Goldberg, the Florida lawyer leading the federal receivership controlling Burke Mountain Resort’s fate, said he has found a viable buyer and expects to offer a “significant update” on

www.northstarmonthly.com

Meanwhile at the Receiver's Office, the "Viable Buyer" has survived the vetting process......

 

[thetrailboss]

Not much to chew on there.

I was able to glean some information from the article.....

“Most importantly,” he said, “the buyer I am speaking with and hope to consummate a transaction with is in my opinion a buyer that most people should be happy with.”

I think that means the usual suspects that are affiliated with BMA. Or at least someone with local connections. And two months puts the announcement at the very end of the ski season.

“My primary duty is to protect the investors who are the main victims of the fraud,” Goldberg wrote this weekend. “It was not in their best interest to sell the resort for the first five to six years because we had to be sure we had enough jobs.”

The jobs requirement had been met by 2022, he wrote, and he and his team of lawyers and accountants turned their attention to selling the resorts to provide more money for the investors. Jay Peak was sold in 2022.

As I had said, the criticism of the Receiver and the delays was not all warranted IMHO. As he said, he has to protect the investors and maximize their return. Second, as I had said, the delay was because Burke had to meet the EB-5 job requirement for the investors. Now if the process continues to drag out then I think criticism may be warranted. But the implication that the Receiver was doing anything improper is not at all deserved. I don't envy him one bit. And I don't think he ever wants to run a ski area again.

In 2023 and again in 2024, he predicted in status reports to the Florida judge who appointed him that Burke would be sold within months. Neither sale took place, and he did not explain why in his reports to the judge.

Here’s what he said in his email this weekend: “The first sale fell through because the anticipated buyer attempted to change the terms of the agreement and renegotiate price at the last minute. The second contract fell through because the anticipated buyer did not have the financing they needed to close.”

Now this is new information. Now we know why the previous deals fell apart. What is not clear is if he has been dealing with the same purchaser all along.

Adams’ petition says that the process unfairly limits potential buyers and it calls for a “more conventional market listing… that could potentially help us find a buyer with a vision for the future.”

I fail to see how this approach would have changed anything considering that there was limited interest to buy the place. Listing it would not all of the sudden increase interest. The bid process is meant to maximize the return for the investors by getting interested suitors into a bidding war. Pacific Group initially offered something like $55 mill for Jay and then ended up paying $20 million more and assuming some debt. That price difference is significant.

And it is not clear to me if he is going to resume the bid process or just accept this offer and move on. It seems to be the latter and that tells me that he only has one interested purchaser.

“Without sounding rude, petitions mean nothing to me,” Goldberg wrote in response to a question by The North Star in this weekend’s email. “That being said, I am personally open to any process that is in the best interest of the investors... I can see a process in this case where a private sale without a stalking horse may be in the investors’ best interest.”

I completely agree.

The North Star has contacted potential Burke buyers, mostly connected in one way or another with Burke Mountain Academy, the elite ski school with priority status for snowmaking, training, and racing on the mountain through easements and other agreements.

And apparently none of them responded.....

Donald Graham and his son Ken have been regarded by many people close to the situation as potential buyers. So far, they have appeared content to stay on the sidelines, waiting for the receiver to make a move. Attempts to reach them have been unsuccessful. Speculation about who might partner with them has centered primarily on Jon Schaefer, the owner of two four-season resorts — Berkshire East and Catamount — in the hills of western Massachusetts. Schaefer has declined to comment.

“I would encourage people to have faith in the knowledge that active conversations are underway,” he wrote this weekend. “I am driving to consummate a sale as expeditiously as the market allows. I am fairly confident everyone will be pleased with the timing and the outcome.”

Reading the tea leaves, I'd say these are two of the partners involved in the purchase in some way or another. Jon as the operating partner. Jon's name repeatedly comes up in this conversation. Graham has negotiated the last four transfers of ownership (and he financed one of them). I expect him to be involved in some way or another. That man has single handedly saved Burke so many times and most folks would not even know who he was if he walked in the door. He prefers to keep a low profile.

T-Minus 60 days and counting.

 

[thetrailboss]