Less than a week after the Holman Grand hotel closed, the provincial government has confirmed someone has offered to buy it.
On Friday, Innovation Minister Al Roach said he didn't have much information about a potential deal, other than Cominar REIT, which owns the land the hotel is on, contacted the province to say someone had submitted an expression of interest.
"Like everybody we're going to have to wait to hear from Cominar and whoever the purchaser is," he said.
Homburg Invest Inc., which owns the hotel, has been under creditor protection for more than a year and has been working with court-appointed monitor Deloitte & Touche as it restructures.
In July Homburg Invest Inc. announced plans to start trying to sell the hotel.
Cominar REIT owns Dyne Holdings, which in turn owns the land under the Holman Grand and leases it to the hotel.
That lease has been cited in reports from the monitor as part of the reason for sustained losses at the hotel.
Roach said the purchase will be a package to buy both the hotel and the land, although he didn't know any specific details related to the sale.
"I haven't seen an offer," he said.
Despite not having much information at this point, Roach said any purchaser would eventually have to contact the government.
"We do hold some lending money on that property."
That money amounts to about $16 million Homburg Invest Inc. borrowed from the province to build the hotel.
The P.E.I. government has a mortgage guarantee on the amount Homburg Invest Inc. borrowed.
