The landmark Hilton Portland Downtown could go up for auction this month on the steps of the Multnomah County Courthouse.
The owner of Hilton and nearby Dunway Portland, also a Hilton hotel, failed to repay a $240 million mortgage in May 2021, the lender said in real estate records filed with the Multnomah County Registrar. claim. Together, the Hilton and Dunway, at 921 SW Sixth Ave. and 545 SW Taylor St., are the largest hotels in the city with 782 rooms.
The Dossier Hotel, a few blocks from the Hilton, is in a similar jam. The owner of the documents at 750 SW Alder St. failed to make mortgage payments from March 2021 to his May 2022, the lender claimed.
Dossier is part of Provenance Hotels, a local boutique hotel chain owned by Gordon Sondland and Catherine Durant. Lenders had hoped to sell the property at her November public auction, but Sondland’s attorneys say they have reached a restructuring deal with the lenders.
The default was first reported by Willamette Week.
The pandemic has devastated hospitality businesses around the world. In the first few months of COVID-19, most hotels had zero occupancy.
A slow return to normality will boost travel and tourism in 2022. State officials hoped the World Athletics Championships in Eugene would give the entire state a boost.
But Portland hoteliers face additional complications brought on by the deterioration of the city’s once-bustling downtown and the rapid collapse of business travel, which is still irreversible.
THI VI Portland LLC and THI VI Portland Lessee LLC are both based in Delaware and own the Portland Hilton and Dunway. These two companies are managed by Brookfield Asset Management, a large investment firm based in New York.
Brookfield could not be reached. In 2015 he purchased two properties for the company. The lender has attempted to schedule a foreclosure auction next Tuesday.
According to property documents filed with the Multnomah County Registrar’s Office, the “gross amount” owed to Dossier’s parent company is $63.2 million.
Since the notice of default was filed, Provenance and its lenders have reached a settlement agreement, lawyers for the company said.
Jim McDermott, longtime Sondland and Provenance attorney, said: “Hotel property will not be seized.”
“Provenance has been trying to settle this loan with LNR Partners for two years,” added McDermott. “Provenance has always had the funds to bring the loan up to date.”
The default raised questions about whether it would undermine a tentative merger between Provenance and Benchmark Pyramid, a large Boston-based hospitality company.
McDermott said Wednesday that the merger is moving forward. “All other Provenance properties are in good financial standing after satisfactorily resolving all other lender issues and Provenance’s transaction with Benchmark Pyramid is proceeding according to plan. ”
— Jeff Manning; [email protected]