Chapter 16 - THE INDEPENDENT APPRAISAL
Dana Keene hired an appraiser nobody in either family had used.
Three valuation scenarios.
One:
Club as ongoing private social business.
Equity after debt:
roughly $2 million.
Two:
Club plus event redevelopment.
Equity range:
$7 million to $10 million depending capital.
Three:
Property sale and redevelopment rights.
Potentially more, but highly uncertain and costly.
Amelia’s trust-linked interest could not be reduced to one simple percentage because of discretionary provisions.
Still, $180,000 appeared low under several reasonable scenarios.
Not necessarily fraudulent if tied to conservative settlement and risk.
But the failure to disclose alternative scenarios was serious.
Then my acquisition.
Had I underpaid?
Independent review showed lender debt price within market range for distressed private hospitality credit.
Outside investors sold after receiving third-party valuation and choosing liquidity.
No evidence I used Amelia’s trust information to set price.
Good.
Then conflict.
My acquisition could benefit Amelia by preserving Belladonna value.
Could also harm her if I used control to dilute trust shares or force asset sales.
Dana recommended protections.
No related-party transaction affecting trust-held shares without independent approval.
I agreed.
No dilution without board and fiduciary review.
Agreed.
No sale of Belladonna property to my hotel company without independent market process.
Agreed.
That last one cost me strategically.
My hotel company had wanted the adjacent parcel.
Now any purchase would require independent bidding.
Good.
May you like
If I wanted to claim I was protecting Amelia, I could not also quietly buy her trust asset cheap.
Power needs structure most when intentions feel pure.
