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L/FOG Temp: 35 °F Wind: W at 3 mph Sunday, December 8, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend November 23, 2002 Court awards Ashland developer hotel, resort After a long investigation of an investor’s fraud, Douglass Neuman wins control of properties By GREG STILES Mail Tribune A new beginning awaits Ashland developer Douglass Neuman, even as his disgraced former financial backer Reed Slatkin awaits a Feb. 4 sentencing date. Neuman’s tortuous 18-month journey through investigations and bankruptcy court came to a satisfying end Friday morning when a Santa Barbara, Calif., bankruptcy judge awarded him control of more than a dozen real estate holdings, among them two signature Southern Oregon properties. The 49-year-old Ashland developer, who remodeled the former Mark Antony Hotel into the grandly-styled Ashland Springs Hotel and rescued dilapidated Lake of the Woods Resort from ruin, was quietly backed by one of the investment world’s meteoric stars in the 1990s. But when Slatkin, an early Earthlink investor, was discovered to have bilked more than 800 investors out more than a half-billion dollars, Neuman himself came under the microscope. Subsequent investigations determined Neuman had played no part in Slatkin’s astounding web of fraud that is still being untangled years after the fact. However, until Friday morning Neuman didn’t know if his years of work in Southern Oregon would be lost as Slatkin creditors strained for whatever they could grasp to recoup fractions of their investments. Judge Robin L. Riblet approved the transfer on Thursday afternoon and announced it to Neuman at about 11 a.m. Friday. "We secured full ownership in the hotel and the other properties," Neuman said Friday from a Santa Barbara hotel. "It’s such a relief. I have no partners, and the hotel survived." While the hotel and resort are Neuman’s for keeps, Mountain Park Development LLC will go through a reorganization over the next two years. Under terms with trustee R. Todd Neilson, Neuman will have the discretion to sell off 16 Mountain Park properties in order to raise $5 million that will go to the trustee for dispersal among Slatkin’s creditors. He said he may purchase some of those properties himself. Neuman bid on two other properties — Topridge Farms, the 246-acre estate outside of Ashland that serves as Neuman’s home, and a Strawberry Lane parcel — that were not Mountain Park Development holdings. Neuman bid $3 million for his residence, but was over-bid by Alex Knecht and Richard Lovett. The Ashland contractor would not disclose his bid in a phone conversation Friday but said the deal would close by Dec. 3 and the figure would then be publicly available. Neilson had predicted in his Dec. 17, 2001, report that the Oregon properties — few of the tangible holdings in Slatkin’s name — would be among the first assets to be sold. But that plan ran askew because Neuman’s partnerships with Slatkin had been set up as limited liability companies, with Neuman as the managing partner. Under Oregon law, Neuman did not have to accept a partner. "Why would I want someone I didn’t want in the company?" Neuman asked. "When it got down to the very end of (Neuman’s proposed $5.25 million) deal, the trustee wouldn’t accept it." So, months passed until Thursday’s deal was sealed. "Never in my wildest dreams did I anticipate such a trying situation," Neuman said. The agreement set well with one of Neuman’s own creditors, Umpqua Bank. "By not forcing the quick sale of the (remaining 16) assets, it gives Doug a chance to manage them and dispose of them in an orderly fashion," said Bill Haden, Umpqua Bank’s president and chief executive officer. "In the long run, the trustee will fare much better and that’s good news to everyone." Haden said the loan balance on the Ashland Springs Hotel was roughly $2.5 million. "From my perspective, Doug perks along, continuing to do everything he says he would do and be an absolute gentleman through the process." Neuman is due back in Oregon on Sunday. "It’s been a tremendous challenge," he says. "I’ve worked very hard to keep these assets for myself and the community." He said that with Mountain Park’s reorganization that he may operate under the name Neuman Properties and Development or another name. "We’ll start working out a marketing plan, managing and selling some of the properties. I’m hoping two years is plenty of time." The Ashland Daily Tidings contributed to this report. Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4463 or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S