Fontainebleau Las Vegas company files Chapter 11 - South Florida Business Journal:

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Fontainebleau Las Vegas LLC and two of its affiliates Fontainebleau Las Vegas Holdings LLC and Fontainebleau Las VegasCapitakl Corp. – filed bankruptcy petitionx in Miamilate Tuesday. The Miami Beacnh hotel is not included inthe filing. The company said in a news releasew that the decision to file Chapteer 11 was the direct result of litigatiohn with lenders on the Las Vegas hotel construction project that had to do with contractualp disputes related tonearly $800 millio n in construction funding for the $2.9 billion resort-casino which is 70 percent complete. Lenders includde , and Deutsche Bank Trust Co. Americas.
The legalp dispute has effectively shut down the projectand “pugt thousands of people out of work,” said Howarfd Karawan, chief restructuring officer of Fontainebleaj Las Vegas, in the release. “Our goal now is to secure funding to completdethis world-class project and restructure our existint debt.” Fontainebleau Las Vegasw reached a provisional agreement with a group of its non-defaultingh lenders for the use of cash for the administratiom of its bankruptcy case, and is in negotiation s to obtain financing to restart construction on that project. Fontainebleayu Miami Beach, which is a separate legaol entity, continues to operate as normal.
Turnberrh West Construction, the project’ws general contractor, is also not included in the according to the news In 2008, Nakheel Hotels of Dubaji bought a 50 percent interest in the Fontainebleaui Miami Beach for $375 million. The Las Vegas hotel companiew that filed bankruptcy are based in Southu Florida because the Soffer family of which also owns the Turnberryy development andconstruction companies, owns all the Fontainebleauj companies.
Jeffrey Soffer is a principal of umbrellwa company FontainebleauResorts LLC, according to state Fontainebleau Las Vegas also withdreqw without prejudice its $3 billion lawsuit in Las Vegasd against some of its lenders, and refiled the case in Miami bankruptcyy court, where the Chapter 11 petitionas were filed. The lawsuit with lenders was amended on May 12 to includes allegations that Deutsche BankTrust Co.
Americas was “seeking to destrohy the Fontainebleau in order tominimize competition” with the nearbyu and Casino, which is wholly owned by a Deutsche Bank "This claim is an attempt by the Fontainebleau'sx developers to distract from the fact that they have breacher their loan covenants. We will defend ourselves vigorously against thismeritless allegation," Deutsche Bank spokesman John Gallaghet said in an e-mailed response. Fontainebleau Las Vegax LLC lists morethan $1 billion in debt and a simila amount in assets on its petition, with more than 1,00o0 creditors. The only South Florida creditor listed was International Bedding in Fort with a claimof $498,737.