Interest in Collinsville hotel pushes sale date back one week
Auction of Holiday Inn will begin on May 21

May 2, 2008

Heightened interest in the upcoming sale of the Collinsville Holiday Inn has resulted in the state providing an additional week before bids are due, the Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias’ Office said today.

Chicago-based Sheldon Good & Company, the real estate auction firm responsible for selling the hotel, recommended the new date to accommodate the of number prospective buyers who have inquired about the hotel.

Since it began marketing the property in March, Sheldon Good has received more than 100 inquires and has been conducting tours of the property in anticipation of the upcoming sale.

Bids for the 228-room hotel are now due at 5 p.m. on May 21. Sheldon Good will then pre-qualify all bidders and analyze each proposal before making a formal presentation of the bids to the Treasurer’s Office on May 29.

Sheldon Good has spent $75,000 of its own money to target market and advertise the sale of the hotel. It has reached out to hundreds of potential buyers nationwide and advertised in Southwest Illinois newspapers and business publications, trade publications and online industry websites, as well a Crain’s Chicago Business, Chicago Tribune and The Wall Street Journal.

In addition to making cosmetic improvements to the hotel, the state recently completed renovating 33 rooms that had been taken out of service because of deteriorating condition and recently installed a new heating and air conditioning system in the main ballroom.

“We are very encouraged by the response we’ve received as a result of our efforts to promote the hotel and raise awareness of the upcoming sale,” said Alan Kravets, president of Sheldon Good & Company.