Case Studies in Community Impact
Richmond, Virginia
After taking a 29.5 million, 10-year, balloon-payment loan against one of their hotel properties, ostensibly to reinvest in the aging property, TPG was delinquent 7 times and the property foreclosed within two years. Meanwhile one year before leveraging the hotel, TPG sued the city over a tax bill, causing one of your Richmond City Council counterparts to remark, “I don't have anything good to say… As we try to bring downtown Richmond back, this isn't the kind of thing that is good for downtown, or good for them." 1
Sheraton owners defaulted on 29.5 million dollar loan
A legal fight with the Richmond Marriott
Providence, Rhode Island
Already plagued by labor issues, when the high-end condos at the Westin failed to sell, TPG’s management alienated its owners by renting the spaces to students and dropped the sale prices, much to the consternation of those who bought in at the height of the market. "…owners at The Residences Providence say The Procaccianti Group has broken promises by leasing and then cutting prices on the condos. The owners said they were told prices would never be reduced, units would never be leased, and the condos would carry the Westin brand for at least 20 years. But leasing and price cuts have occurred, and the Westin name has been dropped to save money, they said." Fast forward to late 2012: TPG announced the sale of the Westin complex to the Omni hotel chain after only 5 years of ownership.2
Luxury condo owners irked by cut in prices
Procaccianti Group sells Westin
Portland, Maine
Purchased in 2005, this property sat untouched for two years and was eventually sold off. According to Sally Noble of ‘The Working Waterfront, “It's been two long years since the Procaccianti Group abandoned their plans to transform the site into a $110 million Emerald City-a 223-room hotel, 97 luxury condominiums and 20,000 square feet of retail space. Will the Jordan's Meats plant be razed and turned into a parking lot? …by this time, the undeveloped industrial block-funky chic or seedy eyesore-has become an indelible part of the East End landscape." 3
Portland’s eastern waterfront: ambitious projects now on hold
Former Jordan's Meats plant in Portland under contract to be sold
Jamestown, Rhode Island
With regard to a TPG project in Jamestown that involved a series of CRMC violations that went uncorrected, a member of the Conservation Commission, and its Chair for 27 years said TPG’s were “…the most blatant and obvious violations I have ever seen.” 4
CRMC orders restoration on Beavertail property
CRMC, Jamestown Vineyards agree on restoration plan for wetland violations
Boston, Massachusetts
In 2006, TPG joined with another developer to renovate an old brewery into condos. Two years later, TPG exited the project, and many of the lofts went unsold. The developer resorted to offering coupons and discounts, finally auctioning off lofts at a 57% price reduction. Four years later, many were still unsold. 5
Mayor Menino Breaks Ground At The Brewery Lofts In Mission Hill
DNA Lofts Auction in Boston
(Scroll down to American Brewery Lofts)
NOTE: This document has been prepared to the best of our abilities as lay researchers. All materials referenced here and linked from our website are in the public domain and most, although not all, are free of charge.
1Harris, Al in RICHMOND BIZSENSE.com (8/21/09); Bass, Scott in Richmond Times column (5/31/06) and hotel-online.com press release (7/3/00)
2 Dunn, Christina, "Luxury Condo Owners Irked by cut in Prices,” The Providence Journal " (2/8/10) and PBN Hospitality column (10/5/12)
3 Noble, Sally, in: The Working Waterfront. Portland. ME (9/1/08) and Bucklin, Kate, “ Former Jordan's Meats plant in Portland under contract to be sold," THE FORECASTER, (11/10/09)
4Riel, Tim, “RMC orders restoration on Beavertail property,” Jamestown Press (8/11/11)
5Santucci, Paul, in Boston Realty Advisors online (6/4/10) and Siefer, Tim in The Boston Globe (1/13/11)
