Riverhouse Sells for $375,000! Will the McCurdy be Impacted?

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McCurdy

In November of 2007 local businessman Frank Peterlin through a company called Riverhouse LLC sold the Riverhouse Hotel to Van Natta Holdings VII of Seymour, Indiana for $4,775,000. Mr. Peterlin’s business had acquired the Riverhouse from Associates Commercial Group just four and a half years earlier for $668,744.
Today the former River House Hotel was sold at sheriff’s auction on Friday to Centra Credit Union of Columbus, Ind., with a winning bid of only $375,000. The bidding on the hotel that’s addresses are 119 – 127 and 201 – 207 Southeast First Avenue was attempted to get a start at $2 million but did not receive a bid until the auctioneer dropped the amount to $200,000. The winning bid of $375,000 came from Centra that holds the mortgage on the property. A Centra Credit Union representative stated that they believe that this property is current undervalued and is planning to do some maintenance and repairs before attempting to resell it at a higher price.
The once elegant downtown hotel, now called the River Walk Plaza Hotel & Suites, is assessed for $3,177,600 according to the Vanderburgh County Assessors website. The taxes on the property are listed as $82,589 per year with a cap of $95,328. As the State of Indiana mandates market value assessments, the assessment on this property should be decreased to $375,000 soon removing nearly all of the property taxes from Centra’s annual obligation.

What about the McCurdy?

As the Riverhouse is right next door to the McCurdy that has been scheduled for extensive renovation and conversion to apartments, how will this diminished valuation affect the efforts to secure the financing to start the McCurdy project? As the properties are similar in size and use does this make the McCurdy worth only $375,000 in its present form? Both hotels have been abandoned for a time and both have had financial issues that have prevented moving forward with maintenance and improvements. Only time will tell.

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4 COMMENTS

  1. Apparently, they can’t GIVE AWAY property in their “revitalized,” but “stinking to high heaven” Downtown District.

    The Downtown Arena boondoggle, the Executive Inn fiasco, the McCurdy folly, the River house dilemma, the Front door Pride homes, setting vacant and the sewers reeking like the bowels of Hell itself.

    City leaders, over time, have burdened us with over a billion dollars in bonded debt, that shows no visible or demonstrable positive impact on the community or the citizens themselves.

    Those who have not already relocated to other counties, are trying to. Those who can’t, feel the vortex of bonded debt, tugging at their heels.

    Growth, by its nature, is upward and outward. The City IS growing; to the North, East and West of the crumbling, landlocked and stinking Downtown District.

    The choice City Fathers have made, to mortgage our futures in Evansville’s back-door, sewer-pipe Downtown is a blunder of epic proportions for Evansville and Vanderburgh County.

    This: In My Opinion

  2. Why this low value, after all, The NEW ARENA is only 8 Blocks or so away, and the city paid around $600,000 for the 50 parking spaces behind the vacant McCurdy for it’s owners.

  3. If Tax Increment Financing schemes depend on the increase in property values, within the zone, to be viable, this one appears to be having the opposite effect.

    Vanderburgh County Taxpayers have a virtual “mountain” of debt to ascend. All without the cash cows, Roberts Stadium and the Executive Inn & Convention Center to provide revenue.

    To this reader, not only are we not ascending, we are sliding downhill. …

    This: In My Opinion

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