By Danielle Braff and John Byrne/Post-Tribune staff writer
Dean White, Northwest Indiana’s resident billionaire, may soon be even richer if a sale of nearly 100 hotels comes to fruition.
A sale of the White Lodging Service Corp.’s hotel holdings, including the Radisson Hotel in Merrillville and Courtyard by Marriott hotels in Chicago, would bring in a reported $1.6 billion for the White family empire.
The company has been speaking with between eight and 12 corporations, including Goldman Sachs & Co. and CNL Hotels & Resorts Inc., according to Crain’s Chicago Business.
Bruce White, CEO of White Lodging, and Dean White, his father, could not be reached for comment Monday, and officials in the company would not confirm the transactions.
If the company is selling its properties, the Indiana hotel industry would be significantly affected, said David Gayes, executive vice president of the Indiana Hotel and Lodging Association.
“They’re definitely a leader in the industry,” Gayes said. “They’re award-winning properties. It’s definitely big news.”
The move will not affect the White business Whiteco, which operates the Star Plaza Theatre and Celebration Station, the Morningside residential development in Crown Point and housing developments in seven other states, said Bill Wellman, a senior vice president of Whiteco.
While hotel developers mulled over the impact the sale would have on their properties, local officials wondered about the political implications of the move.
Dean White is ranked 507th on Forbes magazine’s world’s richest people list, with $1.3 billion to his name, money that he often gives to finance Republican campaigns at the local, state and national level. He will remain an important part of GOP politics, predicted Lake County Republican Chairman John Curley.
“Dean White has been a very good supporter of the Republican Party, working behind the scenes to do what he believes is right for the party for a long time. He probably does more behind the scenes even than he does in terms of financial support,” Curley said.
“He lives here, and I think that he will continue to quietly do what he thinks is right for the part,” Curley added.
Lake County Councilman Larry Blanchard, a Republican representing Crown Point, where White lives, values White for reasons other than his political involvement.
“I have never tapped his shoulder (for a campaign contribution),” Blanchard said. “But I have had occasion to meet him, and he’s a real gentleman, a professional.”
“He’s a philanthropist, who is generous with what he has, and there aren’t too many people like that, here or anywhere.”