REPORT: Q Burke Hotel Construction Could Be Shut Down
Construction manager PeakCM threatening shut down construction due to state EB-5 roadblocks.
Wednesday, November 4, 2015, NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com
In a VTDigger story, Q Burke Hotel Construction Manager PeakCM's Jerry Davis stated he may have to shut down construction due to being owed $4 million.
According to VTDigger, the massive EB-5 projects run by the owners of Jay Peak and Q Burke in Northern Vermont are being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
According to VTDigger, since July Vermont Department of Financial Regulation has required its approval before construction payments can be made. Davis and Bill Stenger allege the state has significantly delayed the payment process for construction contractors, which may result in a work stoppage, as well as a delay in the projected December 11 hotel opening.
PeakCM has managed construction at many of the EB-5 projects at Jay Peak. Ground was broken for the Q Burke Hotel in June 2014. VTDigger reports $120 million in EB-5 contributions is needed for Q Burke.
In 2007, the Vermont EB-5 Regional Center was rechartered. Under the EB-5 program, a foreigner can invest $1 million in an approved United States business (which must then create jobs), in exchange for a green card. With the Northeast Kingdom labeled a Targeted Employment Area, the minimum investment is cut in half to $500,000, making participating rural businesses such as Jay Peak more attractive.
The current ownership group has been in place at Jay Peak since 2008. Its first large EB-5 funded project, the Tram Haus Lodge, opened in December of 2009. A $27 million indoor water park opened two years later. Burke Mountain was acquired in 2012 and rebranded as Q Burke in 2013.
