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The Desert Sun
Developer of Talus in La Quinta fails to remedy issues with lender; next steps unclear
By Tom Coulter, Palm Springs Desert Sun,
2024-04-26
A long-delayed luxury resort in La Quinta called Talus is facing another roadblock on its path toward completion: The city announced Thursday that the project’s lead developer failed to adequately remedy a default notice issued last week, potentially leading to litigation, though the next steps were not immediately clear.
The city issued its default notice April 17, marking the third issued by the city against SilverRock Development Company and project leader Robert Green. The notice was issued shortly after Cypress Point Holdings, a corporate investment firm for Talus, recorded a notice of trustee’s sale against Green and his company and scheduled a foreclosure sale. (Talus was previously known as the SilverRock development until a name change in 2021.)
The notice gave Green and his company seven days to “cure” the city’s default notice by requiring him to pay off his obligations to the Cypress firm, which issued a notice of default and election to sell properties, including the project’s main components, in January. Green also failed to obtain a deal, known as a forbearance agreement, to grant him more time and delay any foreclosure proceedings, according to the city’s press release Thursday.
“The City is working collaboratively with all parties involved, including Cypress ... and is prepared, if necessary, to initiate litigation to protect the City’s interests,” the city said in the prepared statement.
The latest update comes as Green is aiming to secure more than $300 million in financing for the project by late next month, with a deadline looming at the end of June that, if missed, would again place the company in default under its development agreement with the city.
Talus is slated to include a pair of luxury-brand hotels, as well as 29 single-family homes and 55 condominiums from the same brands, Montage and Pendry, that will be used as short-term rentals. A golf clubhouse, a large conference center and a luxury spa are also planned for the 525-acre project site, roughly 130 acres of which are owned by Green's company.
The project, which has seen its total price tag rise to more than $600 million, has been in the works for several years. The foothills area just south of 52nd Avenue in La Quinta has been eyed by city officials for a large-scale development, formerly known as SilverRock, since at least 2002.
But while one golf course opened there in 2005, further plans were derailed by economic troubles during the Great Recession and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. Coming out of the pandemic, Green engaged with several new lenders to refinance much of the project.
Since then, the project has seen delays, such as in 2022 when Green said the hotels were expected to open by 2024. In October 2023, the La Quinta City Council approved an amendment to the development agreement that set a new timeframe for the project, requiring the Montage luxury hotel and other components to be built by 2025.
That amended agreement set a June 30 deadline for Green’s company to secure the project's necessary financing. City Manager Jon McMillen told The Desert Sun last week that the June deadline “still stands.”
But with the default notice unresolved, the city could take other steps before that deadline arrives: During a closed session in February, the council unanimously voted to authorize the city attorney to initiate litigation against Green’s company to protect the city’s interests — an option reiterated in Thursday's statement.
Green, whose company first joined the project in 2014, did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Tom Coulter covers the cities of Palm Desert, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells. Reach him at thomas.coulter@desertsun.com.
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