Share this article! Deal brightens Sunwest prospects Blackstone Group is raising its offer to buy Sunwest Management by $50 million to $285 million. The offer includes Blackstone paying much of the debt owed by Sunwest. The state’s largest chain of senior living properties, Sunwest faced ire from investors and legal action from the SEC after … Read more
Deal brightens Sunwest prospects
Blackstone Group is raising its offer to buy Sunwest Management by $50 million to $285 million. The offer includes Blackstone paying much of the debt owed by Sunwest.
The state’s largest chain of senior living properties, Sunwest faced ire from investors and legal action from the SEC after a sudden collapse cost investors more than $400 million.
A significant downside for Oregon to a winning Blackstone bid is its plan for its partner in the deal, Seattle-based Emeritus Senior Living, to take over management of Sunwest’s 148 properties. That means Sunwest’s Salem headquarters and its 200 employees would likely be phased out over time.
But for the estimated 1,200 Sunwest investors, who lost more than $400 million when the company nearly collapsed amid fraud accusations in 2008, Blackstone’s new and improved offer could significantly increase their recovery on what seemed like a lost cause a year ago.
Read the full story at OregonLive.com.
Recession hits gambling programs
With state lottery profits down about 20% from their 2008 peak, cuts are being made to gambling treatment and prevention programs.
At least 265 people will be turned away from the programs, which are funded by a 1% cut from lottery profits. Oregon’s state-run gambling business brings about $1 billion per biennium into the state budget.
The drop in sales doesn’t mean there are fewer problem gamblers. Good times or bad, experts say, addicts keep playing — and losing.
“We should be redoubling our efforts, and instead we have to tread water just to stay afloat,” says Paul Potter, who oversees gambling addiction treatment for the Oregon Department of Human Services. Potter says he will be forced to dole out $1.2 million less than the programs were counting on between now and July 2011, when the current state budget period ends.
Read the full story at OregonLive.com.
Door may close on Salem condos
The Meridian, an 89-unit condo project in downtown Salem, faces foreclosure following a lawsuit from the lender against The Meridian’s owners.
First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. says a payment on the project is due and expects a total of about $35 million in unpaid principal, interest and late fees. The Meridian is the largest of the condo buildings recently completed in downtown Salem.
Dan Berrey, the developer of The Meridian, said Thursday that he was optimistic about the chances for negotiating an extension of the construction loan and avoiding foreclosure.
Filing the lawsuit amounted to “due diligence” on the bank’s part in the event the parties can’t reach an agreement, he said. Negotiations with the lender are ongoing “as we speak,” Berrey said.
Read the full story at the Statesman Journal.
Dry winter leaves farms thirsty
This winter’s snowpack level was 50% to 85% of normal throughout the state, leaving farmers and ranchers worried about irrigation in the upcoming dry months.
The snowpack’s water content was also well below normal, creating a vexing problem for agriculture, the state’s second-leading economic sector.
Despite the state’s wet reputation, nearly 45% of Oregon farms irrigate some or all of their land, about 2 million acres statewide. Irrigated farms produce about 77% of the state’s crop value, according to the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Melting snow feeds the state’s rivers and streams and fills reservoirs, providing water for the summer months.
“Generally, the situation is pretty dire if you rely on snowpack for your irrigation water,” said Don Horneck with Oregon State University’s Hermiston Agricultural Research and Extension Center.
Read the full story at OregonLive.com.
Public wants Gold Ray Dam out
The results from a public opinion poll show overwhelming support for a $5.6 million proposal to remove the Gold Ray Dam on the Rogue River in Southern Oregon.
Responses ran almost 20 to 1 in favor of removing the dam. Those opposed to the removal included supporters for a plan to restore the dam, install a new fish ladder and restore hydropower capabilities.
Jackson County has a $5.6 million contract with a construction firm to study the environmental effects of removing the dam and then to remove it should the studies point toward that option…
The county already has received a $5 million federal stimulus grant specifically for dam removal, and the dam would have to be removed by this fall to qualify for that money.
Read the full story at the Mail Tribune.
