In response to Thursday’s This Just In post about Halsey Minor’s apparent “big failed erection,” as some have dubbed the just-sitting-there frame of the Landmark Hotel, C-VILLE has heard from Mr. Minor himself.
This morning, Minor gave us permission to publish all his thoughts on this latest development.
In response to the timeline of the Landmark Hotel, Minor said:
Thursday, May 7:
"Chiara, while not all of your article is accurate (I did not yell at the now fired, defunct bank president) you got many things right. I originally thought I would put up $6 mm and that would be that. I could go back to my day job. I am not a developer. Obviously it has turned out to be anything but simple.
"I have a long list of successes that you neglected but not all of them started out well either. I unfortunately picked a developer who had never built a hotel and a bank teetering on the edge of insolvency the whole time, and I picked a time when the banking system and the economy were crashing.
More after the picture.
Halsey Minor (front) at the groundbreaking of the Landmark Hotel with former developer Lee Danielson.
"Alex and I work everyday on getting the hotel going again. Having the bank collapse rather than slow pay, no pay, etc and blame it on me and scare all the subs was guaranteeing the hotel was never going to be built and now there is a chance again. I asked the Silverton CEO if he had ever had a project go wrong and he looked me in the eye and said never in 20 years. Apparently he was not including the 179 projects currently in default. Desperate people do and say desperate things. I am not desperate. I am patient.
"Now everyone has left the scene, Lee once again with lawsuits in tow, and I have gone from the guy Lee just needed $6 mm from to the guy in charge. We will build the hotel and it will live up to everything I have promised. I have taken a massive amount of blame I don’t deserve but that is life. Your cross-town rivals have had enormous fun with half-truths. While I am patient I am also determined and my guess is that we will create a beautiful hotel on the downtown mall, one that didn’t get $11 mm from the city or $25 mm in today’s dollars.
"I want to thank C-VILLE for at least doing its best to learn and print the facts.
"Regards,
"Halsey Minor."
Monday, May 11:
"One last thing. While it may be childish of me, I do want to thank the anonymous poster who compared ‘me’ to a 10-story building. While it is clearly an exaggeration, it’s the first nice thing anyone has said about me or the hotel lately.
"Halsey Minor."