The Trenton Times published the following article on October 9, 2013. To read the full article, click here.
Former Trenton Marriott hotel to be sold at auction next month
By Jenna Pizzi/The Times of Trenton
on October 09, 2013 at 3:31 PM, updated October 09, 2013 at 4:08 PMTRENTON — The Lafayette Yard Hotel and Conference Center could be sold off to the highest bidder as soon as next month, an attorney told the hotel board today.
Robert Rattet, the bankruptcy attorney for the city-backed hotel, said he is hoping the judge overseeing its Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings will approve a Nov. 25 auction date.
“The goal is to get this sold and closed to the highest and best use,” Rattet said at the meeting this afternoon.
Rattet, who was hired last month by the Lafayette Yard Community Development Corp., the nonprofit board that oversees hotel operations, said he should know more after a hearing next Tuesday.
The LYCDC voted to enter into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August to facilitate the sale of the former Trenton Marriott. The hotel was built with city-backed debt and opened in 2002, but has struggled to turn a profit.
Rattet said a few interested buyers have already done walkthroughs of the building and two are ready to submit a bid and put up deposits of $500,000 each on Friday.