Lenders Foreclose on Clermont Hotel, "Blondie's Home"

By Tony Wilbert, Wilbert News Strategies LLC

ATLANTA (10:30 p.m., June 22, 2009) - The home of Blondie the stripper is in foreclosure.

Regions Bank, the lender on Blondie's "home," the Clermont Hotel at 789 Ponce de Leon Ave. in Midtown Atlanta, advertised the beginning of the foreclosure process on the building earlier this month. The initiation of the foreclosure process does not guarantee the Clermont would be sold on the courthouse steps on the first Tuesday of July, but it could mean the owner would have to persuade the lender to restructure its loan.

The building is owned by 789 Ponce de Leon Avenue LLC and Jeffrey Notrica, head of Inman Park Properties, according to the foreclosure advertisement that appeared in The Daily Report. They have defaulted on their loan, according to the legal notice.

The Clermont, best known for the Clermont Lounge , the dance club in the basement where Blondie and her friends perform on the bar, has been on the market since April. That's when Gene Kansas Developments listed the seven-story landmark on behalf of Inman Park Properties.

The 88,000-square-foot property, with 129 keys, has an asking price of $6.5 million.

The threat of foreclosure comes as Gene Kansas Developments is running the Clermont Hotel Design Competition. The contest encourages designers, architects, students and others to submit their design for the Clermont's lobby, stunning rooftop and a guest room for the chance to win $1,000 and a weekend at the historic property.

Come back to Skyline Views for updates on the foreclosure proceeding and design contest on this piece of Atlanta history.