The Vice President of Ulster Savings Bank today explains what went wrong with a recent online auction sale of Catskill's Friar Tuck Inn and Spa last month and vows to continue sales efforts over the coming months. The Daily Freeman story quotes Michael Shaughnessy, executive vice president of Ulster Savings Bank, saying that the winner of an online auction through Auction.com failed to come forward within 15 days to submit a down payment for the resort on state Route 32, then noting that the bank’s broker is now working with some backup buyers to try to negotiate the resort’s sale. There are eight or nine potential buyers, three of whom had been registered to bid during the Nov. 18 auction, Shaughnessy said. “We’re still hopeful we’re going to sell it,” Shaughnessy said Monday of the resort property. He said the bank hopes to sell the resort for at least the $2.5 million that was bid on it during last month’s auction.

The bank foreclosed on the Friar Tuck Inn resort in April after the owners tried to file for bankruptcy protection in June 2009 and then tried unsuccessfully to sell the property at auction in November 2009. At the time the property was foreclosed on, the bank was owed about $3.8 million on the resort’s mortgage.



Shaughnessy previously said the bank would take a loss on the sale of the resort, but said the financial institute is not in the real estate business and did not want to continue carrying the resort and the insurance, taxes and security on the property.

The Friar Tuck had been owned by cousins Ricky and Ross Caridi. The auction they arranged last year failed after the winning bidder, identified only as an Oklahoma City business, failed to come forward with the funds to pay for the property.

The winner of last month’s auction was not identified.

The Friar Tuck resort has 376 guest rooms, 52,000 square feet of exhibition space, banquet facilities, conference rooms, two outdoor pools, an indoor poll and an indoor Jacuzzi, among other amenities.