Polaris in Bankruptcy Protection!

Anyone have anything new? I just feel the clock is ticking towards 22nd March, and would like to have a bit of info- I scan the internet newspapers but could have missed something. I'm hopeful all will be resolved and  the fact some work has restarted here and there on various  PW resorts must be good. Good news that on CdA the gym is open and I hope the 'surgery' bar reopens soon as that sports zone could bring alive the Jardines but thats not PW's doing so I'm hoping someone might have some good financial news. It'd be great if some footings were to be dug for the club house but again thats going to be an intercontinental concern rather than PW- tho' PW have to build it. Read anything anyone?

Just seen these threads on Simply Networking.  Contradictory, but if I was to believe any thread it would be the second "unofficial" thread (purely because all Polaris World have done of late is lie).

http://www.simplynetworking.es/news-2440-31-polaris_world_claim_that_settlement_is_imminent.html

http://www.simplynetworking.es/news-2441-31-polaris_world_bankruptcy_talks_the_unofficial_version.html

Very Interesting Articles David! it will be officially revealed in the next 2 weeks that Polaris are bankrupt then we can all move on!

TQM, Intercontinental building the clubhouse? That seems strange, Intercontinental lease all their property and normally enter into long term leasing. I have never heard of intercontinental building a hotel, yet alone a Golf Clubhouse. How would they make a profit, if they didnt own the course?

Where did you get this info from?

Hi

I'm a bit worried that Jack Nicklaus has removed his name from the golfing, does this include Condado as the acticle doesn't make it clear (not to me anyway).

Also, not being a golfer myself, will this have much of an impact on the resort ?

Phil

Yeah,

Interesting stuff David.

I think you are right to be worried Phil.

Like I posted recently on the Condado signature course thread, in my opinion, there ain't a hope in hell of Jack putting his name to Condado at the moment. There is more to the JN signature endorsement than just getting the structure of the fairways & course layout in place and pro's from a little known Hi 5 tournament ringing out it's praises. We are supposed to be in a whole different league here. The whole thing has to hit you in the eye as a quality product.

Could well be that the best thing for us (not the poor unfortunate customers who have shelled out 40% property deposits and golf debentures for 20 odd years) is that Polaris go under. The golf course could certainly be considered an asset and we may well see the funding to finish off released a lot sooner (because where will Polaris get the money ?) if someone else come in who are keen to keep the association with the Nicklaus golf trail going.

I think right now the trail has gone cold !!

Regards,

I hear what you are saying about PW.  My concern is that we get a mish-mash of smaller investors all doing their own thing.  At least PW resorts all sing off the same hymn sheet in terms of aims, standards, goals etc.  The last thing I would want to see is a whole heap of wide boys operating Karaoke pubs and all serving all day English breakfasts on wobbly plastic tables with cheap Chinese emporiums selling tacky souvenirs and plastic c**p.  Sound familiar????  Of course we could end up with some cracking alternatives to the PW vision but I hope these are all very, very carefully monitored.  I, for one, am happy to pay an extra euro per glass of wine if it means we get the right surroundings and have the five star resort we all bought into.

Same here Arlene.

But, what will PW end up like if & when they get through this ???? I think most of us have noticed the 'short cuts' while things were supposedly rosy..................missing swimming pools, town centres scrapped, penny pinching on level of planting in some of the gardens and not bothering to replace dead & dying plants. All this when there were nowhere near the level of buget restraints there will be in place in a 're-born' Polaris.

The good thing about Condado is that there is a cracking infrastructure in place and this can only act in our favour if we end up looking for investors to pick up the baton.

Bears thinking about.

I'd missed that 'unofficial' statement regarding PW in Simply Networking- makes depressing reading. I'm not adverse to the resort being taken over but actually see it being broken up and thats my concern. The golf course may escape if its taken over by another organisation, but for the rest of us?

Camposol has served it purpose for most of us in the last couple of years so I wont decry it.

In my previous post I didnt say that Intercontinental would build the golf club- I said it would be an Intercontinental concern but PW had to build it.

I didnt know JN may have removed his name from our golf course either.

I agree with Arlene that at least PW sings from its own hymn sheet and see an uncertain furture if the resort is broken up. However, things change and we will have to weather the storm. I'm hoping PW give some financial info soon.

Just read the other article - gawd! Are Paramount proproing to build right near Condado as the article says' on the flat piece of land near Condado' ? I hope they dont mean just across the dual carriageway.

Before anyone says I'm being negative the idea of a theme park isnt without its merits in terms of rental opportunities and jobs but I didnt buy on Condado expecting a theme park on the front step, hopefully the plan is for nearer the airport.

Does anyone know why the Condado signature course is not showing as being open via Jack's site as follows:

http://www.nicklaus.com/design/alhama/

Is everyone that confident that the theme park is likely to go ahead? Not sure why they would pick such a quiet place. Does anyone know what the Disney site in Paris was like before they developed?

Quiteman

I would like to hope your are correct and  I would love paramount to build next door its what we need , if you were resident here you would realise thats what we need in the area I think it would be the best thing since sliced bread, I also believe we could be better off without Polaris, however Simply networking like any newspaper almost always quote a "spokeman" (no name" ) said xxxx  I find it very difficult to believe many of these stories until they are announced by some official body. or it happens!

How many of us gamble on Speculation?

I would love Paramount across the road. From the penthouse roof terrace  we can look across the golf course to the mountains in one direction and in the evening look the the other way at the nightly firework displays. To me we get the best of both worlds.

Barry & Sue

Also firmly in the camp of pro-Paramount. If we should be so lucky !

It would be just the thing we need to spur on the next phases of Condado and bring the place to life. Nearest reasonable sized hotel is at Camposol therefore the need for the Inter Continental would become much more feasable.

Why somewhere so quiet ? Firstly, the Murcia regional government would be bursting a gut to give them the incentives to site themselves in the region. Look at the road network around Condado - it is a breeze to drive in from any direction (Alicante, Murcia, Cartagena, Mazarron, Almeria, Mar Menor and of course Corvera). Yep, over the other side of the dual carriageway sounds OK to me Tony (it is a long road in after all !). Like Barry mentions, free firework displays while we enjoy a bbq and a few glasses of vino on the patio of an evening. Bliss

I await 'official news' with great hope & anticipation.

I'm not adverse to a theme park per se. Between us and the airport, if it happens. 10- 15mins away would be ideal. Anyone who has holidayed in Florida or at Disney Paris knows how busy, how congested the roads are, how packed everything where is.  I know it would bring huge benefits to the region and to Condado in rental and job opportunities and I'm all for that but genuinely dont want our towns and villlages around Condado spoilt as they are a touch of real Spain and I like that.. But this remains only a rumour and it will be interesting to see how it pans out along with the other information about PW's financial situation. Disappointed if JN is no longer involved in the golf trail, definately added kudos to the courses. Lets hope for more definate news soon.

Hello everyone,

As usual lots of guessing and not much fact......

http://www.nicklaus.com/design/search_under.php?crit_sort=1&name=&state=&4_option=3&country=Spain&submit=Search - jack still has his name to the course - no idea why its not showing as open but its still got his name.

Disney World - this rumour has been around for 10 years in Murcia and is also a rumour in many other parts of Spain including the Costa del Sol. And for other parts of the world for that matter.

Polaris will have to make an official statement in 3 weeks - looking forward to it  

To bring thread back on track

From yesterday's papers, not that it says that much ;

http://www.laverdad.es/murcia/v/20100309/region/polaris-tiene-practicamente-cerrado-20100309.html

The agreement of the Polaris World companies with banks and creditors' is nearly closed "and awaiting the signature in the coming days, according to a spokesman yesterday said the promoter of Murcia, which is a leader in residential tourism market. He noted that lack a fringe to negotiate and to avoid the composition, which is the objective that this company when it announced in December at the Mercantile Court number two in Murcia on the current state of insolvency of fifteen of their corporations. The asset valuation process was conducted in a comprehensive manner in recent months to cope with a debt estimated at 83 million euros.
Polaris World had a period of three months to reach an agreement, which expires on 29th of this month because the court acted on the media three days before the end of last year. Polaris will meet the debt with the assets that still has with its housing, hotels and golf courses spread to the resorts in the towns of Torre Pacheco, Murcia, Alhama.
Appeal of the law
Those responsible for the company, whose majority shareholder is Meroño Pedro Garcia made the decision to enter the phase preconcursal to control their financial situation and avoid bankruptcy protection, reported intention from the outset and a willingness to maintain the jobs, which number about 700. Banks and savings banks with which it has been negotiating since the first time expressed their desire to reach an agreement. In recent months, the makers of Polaris have preferred to keep silent about the talks.
Communication addressed to the Commercial Court will be archived at the time the agreement is signed. The company used this approach to Article 5.3 of the Insolvency Act to prevent some of the creditors forced the contest. It is a measure of three months to give oxygen to companies with solvency problems.
Prices go lower
The situation of this company, and the rest of the industry may improve in coming months as much as you do in the real estate market that is beginning to show signs of slight recovery. In this regard, sources of savings banks in the region contacted by this newspaper indicated yesterday that he is noticing movement in the United Kingdom and Germany, from which most foreign buyers of second homes. At its peak season, Polaris World was considering a study showing that about 10,000 homes were sold annually of all types in the Region. This situation lasted a few years, until after the break that has dragged almost all real estate companies.
Precisely the situation that Polaris has been called due to cooling of the market and the lack of buyers, prompting him to stay with a large number of unsold homes, other than those transferred to banks and mid - last year with payments in kind, for the purpose of cleaning up most of its debt, which is shuffled at the time, with around 1,000 million euros.
The prospective owners are waiting until prices bottom out. As an example, buyers and investors are still interested in English adquirirr residential housing in the Region of Murcia, as evidenced by the fact that there are real estate agents who are organizing trips to attract customers and they know that there are offers. These sources indicate that homes are still sold, but future owners are confident that prices fall further.

Quietman

I take your point about the roads and that people bought into a quiet location but we also bought into a 5* resort with an oasis and 3 golf courses. This might just happen if something like this was built nearby as the rental on condado would go through the roof hence driving the the prices of the appartments up and making it the resort we hoped and dreamed for.

I think a local Paramount Park would be great news, however it will never come to Murcia. Yes Murcia has a great road network, yes they have an abundance of low cost land, yes they have government incentives and will soon have 3 local airports. However, Paramount already own Terra Mitica. This is Spains Largest theme park, this is just outside Spains largest resort (Benidorm), which gets hundres of thousands of tourists each year.

This park has been in financial trouble for ages! If paramount cant make that pay, they will not open up a new park, 1.5 Hours away, in an area with far fewer tourists and with far fewer hotels.

If Paramount do decide to build a new park in Europe, they would be crazy to build it so close to Spains biggest park and in direct competition with themselves.

I am not being negative! I would love to have a paramount park nearby, it would help condado property prices, rentals and future developments. However being realistic, paramount are looking at several sights, I would not imagine Murcia beating off the competition.

Darren I don't think I have ever read a positive post from you !!!!!!   lol

Not done one yet! You never know one day I may surprise you all!.....