Besieged CEO of Northstar Commercial Partners sells Cherry Hills mansion for $ 8.5 million after scare – The Denver Post

The beleaguered CEO of Northstar Commercial Partners has sold his Cherry Hills Village mansion for $ 8.5 million.

But Brian Watson feared a newly appointed receiver could overturn it in the home stretch before the deal was struck, court records show.

Watson bought the eight-bedroom, 13-bathroom home at 8 Churchill Drive for $ 6.6 million in February 2020, two months before he and Northstar were sued by Seattle-based Amazon.

Amazon accused Northstar, which is 100% owned by Watson, of bribing two Amazon employees to win data center development deals in northern Virginia. Watson, who was the Republican candidate for Colorado state treasurer in 2018, has denied any wrongdoing.

But the litigation has “devastated” his business, Watson said in court documents, forcing him to lay off staff and sell many of Northstar’s real estate assets.

Watson initially listed his 20,000 square foot mansion attached to the Cherry Hills Country Club in December 2020. The original asking price of $ 8.3 million was later increased to just under $ 10 million.

The last-minute drama surrounding the sale of the home this month revolves around the appointment last month of a receiver to oversee the assets of Northstar and Watson.

Watson was originally scheduled to sell his home on December 9, according to court records. But two days before that, an atypical case appeared in the court record of the trial facing Northstar from Amazon.

It was filed by receiver Mark Roberts, who said he only recently learned of the pending sale.

Roberts asked the court for an emergency hearing to essentially answer a question: Shouldn’t he, as receiver, have to approve this sale?

Roberts said he believed the answer to be yes, but that Watson and his lawyers objected to that notion.

Mr. Watson and his attorney have repeatedly claimed that due to their claim that the house is owned by the Brian Watson revocable trust (for which Brian Watson is allegedly acting as trustee), the receiver does not have the right to control the layout of the house, ”Roberts writes in court documents.

In an email attached to Robert’s request, Watson said the house was to be sold for $ 8.5 million, but if the receiver decides to cancel the sale, it “could cause economic damage in excess of $ 145 million. $ 000,000 “.

First, Watson wrote, there was the $ 8.5 million that would not be paid. Then there was the fact that there were four trust deeds or liens against the property, totaling $ 12.5 million, and he was behind on payments for each of them. If the sale did not take place, he would owe more interest and foreclosure proceedings could begin, Watson wrote, saying this could cause him to file for bankruptcy.

Watson said part of the proceeds from the sale will be used to pay interest on another of his property, so foreclosure proceedings could begin there as well. He said he also had to pay $ 493,000 in brokerage fees and that his real estate agents could sue him if the sale did not go through. A lawsuit of the buyers was also possible, he said.

But the main factor behind the $ 145 million calculation, Watson wrote, was that Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck – the Denver law firm representing him in the Amazon litigation – had one of the liens on the property and could cease to represent him if they were not. paid.

“This lack of legal representation could create exposure to millions and millions of dollars, not to mention proper legal representation in court to give us a chance / fair trial against corporate giants like Amazon and others, “Watson wrote. “We also have existing and potential claims against individuals / companies / groups that we believe owe us approximately $ 100,000,000.”

Roberts, the receiver, said in court documents that liens were the main reason he wanted to weigh on the sale.

“Based on a preliminary examination of the trust deeds registered with respect to the house, the receiver has reason to believe that certain liens asserted against the house may be defective or otherwise subject to challenge or challenge by the receiver or other parties with standing, ”Roberts wrote.

On December 8, a day before the scheduled closing date, Justice Liam O’Grady ruled in favor of receiver.

“The receiver has the power to determine whether the sale of the property is in the best interests of his or her office and, if so, what should be done with the proceeds,” Judge Liam O’Grady wrote. “Ownership is clearly a Watson asset.”

But Roberts ultimately did not cancel the sale. The deal was reached on December 17, eight days later than originally planned.

The buyers were Raminder Mann and Ramneet Mann, according to public records. Raminder Mann is the CEO of Albuquerque-based computer company Advanced Network Management, which has offices in Denver and Colorado Springs, according to the company’s website.

Brigette Modglin and Jay Modglin were the listing agents. Patti Helm, Libby Weaver and Pamela Helm of Compass represented the buyer.

The sale of Watson’s house is one of the most expensive residential sales to close in the Denver area in 2021. The top spot is held by Mike Shanahan’s former mansion in Cherry Hills Village, which sold out. for $ 15.7 million in October.