Nov. 17--FORT WORTH, Texas -- The developer of the new Westin Beechwood Hotel and Creeks at Beechwood golf course in north Fort Worth said Friday that it hopes to stave off a Dec. 4 foreclosure.  Beechwood has been working with its lender, CoServ Realty Holdings in Denton, since the spring to restructure $53 million in loans on the property near the Texas Motor Speedway, said David Farmer, Beechwood's chief financial officer.  "We are confident we will be able to resolve both of the issues," Farmer said.  CoServ Realty Holdings filed foreclosure petitions in Denton County on Tuesday. If the debt cannot be resolved by Dec. 4, Beechwood faces losing the property in a courthouse sale.  The 286-room, full-service hotel opened in late September, but the $10 million Greg Norman golf course has been open since October 2000. It is Fort Worth's first combination golf resort and hotel.  Despite the downturn of the hotel industry nationwide, it is the golf course that put Beechwood in arrears, Farmer said.  The filing wasn't unexpected, he said.  "The hotel is not delinquent on its debt," Farmer said. "It was cross- collateralized with the loan on the golf course. The golf course is delinquent."

The Westin Beechwood Fort Worth Opened September 27, 2001 The Westin Beechwood Fort Worth - a 286-room, luxury hotel and conference center is North Fort Worth's first true business / resort destination, sitting at the center of Beechwood's 902 acre master - planned development. The hotel's unique architectural design maximizes views of the Creeks at Beechwood championship golf course and complements the natural beauty of the surrounding Beechwood property. At approximately 250,000 square feet, the hotel features a conference center, ballrooms, meeting rooms, a full-service restaurant, swimming pool, a health center and retail kiosks. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. manages the upscale hotel under the Westin brand for Beechwood Company, the developers of the project.

Farmer said the golf course began having cash-flow problems in the spring, when developers were forced to close the course for 45 days to repair severe damage from heavy spring rains. Expenses also increased. 

The hotel and golf course are operating as developers work with the lender to restructure the debt, he said. 

"We anticipate that going forward," Farmer said. 

CoServ Realty Holdings could not be reached to comment Friday. 

The hotel and golf course are just two pieces in a project being developed by Beechwood in the 902-acre Beechwood Business Park, south of Texas 114 on the west side of Interstate 35W. 

In June, Beechwood announced plans for 600,000 square feet of speculative office space. Construction is anticipated to begin in the first quarter. 

The Beechwood filing is one of the largest foreclosures posted in North Texas in quite some time, according to George Roddy of Foreclosure Listing Services in Dallas. 

Only about half of all foreclosure postings go through formal foreclosure proceedings, he said. 

"A lot of times, it's a wake-up call to the borrower to get back on track," Roddy said. "But when the economy takes a respite, so does real estate sometimes." 

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(c) 2001, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News. HOT, 

Also see: Open Only 45 Days, Lender Files Foreclosure Petition Against the $53.5 million Westin Beechwood in Fort Worth