Buyers express interest in stalled Hammons property

Potential buyers have shown interest in the stalled $90 million, 300-room John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo., which began construction April 28, 2008.

The hotel has been on hold since Oct. 31, 2009, when a $24.6 million mechanic’s lien was filed by its general contractor, Tulsa, Okla.-based construction firm Flintco Inc.

“We’re aware of a couple potential interested parties,” said Fred Vietch, a vice president with Nor’wood Development Group, the company that is developing the 138-acre InterQuest Marketplace retail and entertainment center where the Renaissance Hotel Spa and Conference Center is located.

Vietch declined to name the parties or say whether they are from the Colorado Springs area.

Nor’wood is the site developer and has developed the infrastructure for the hotel, Vietch said.

“They need to be negotiating with Hammons and/or Flintco,” Vietch said. “We’re not aware specifically of the degree of interest, nor are we specifically aware of where any negotiations, if any, are at this time.”

The center is between 65 percent and 70 percent completed with a Hollywood Theater Interquest 14, Cheddars Restaurant and Colorado Mountain Brew Pub.

Justin Harris, JQH Hotels & Resorts spokesman and senior vice-president and general counsel, declined to comment on potential hotel buyers.

“We are continuing to work closely with Flintco to determine how best to achieve a positive outcome on the hotel development project in Colorado Springs,” Harris said by e-mail Dec. 9.

Other cities with Hammons hotel projects on hold include Denton, Texas; Osage Beach; and Wilmington, N.C., which Hammons pulled out of. His company has built more than 200 hotels nationwide.

For more JQH Hotels & Resorts development news, look to the Dec. 20 print edition.[[In-content Ad]]