The Firm is representing affiliates of Centerbridge Partners, L.P. (“Centerbridge”), and Great Wolf Resorts, Inc. (“Great Wolf”), a portfolio company affiliated with Centerbridge, in connection with the sale by the current equity holders of a 65% controlling interest in Great Wolf to an affiliate of Blackstone Real Estate Partners IX, L.P. (“Blackstone”). As part of the transaction, Blackstone and Centerbridge will form a new $2.9 billion joint venture to own Great Wolf.
Great Wolf is a leading owner and operator of family-oriented entertainment resorts, with 18 resorts located in the United States and Canada.
Centerbridge Partners, L.P. is a private investment management firm employing a flexible approach across investment disciplines, including private equity, credit and real estate. As of June 30, 2019, it has approximately $27 billion in capital under management.
The Simpson Thacher team includes Caroline B. Gottschalk, Benjamin P. Schaye, Nicholas J. Marricco, Kjell Jacobsen, Jiarui Li and Shenlu Xu (M&A); Gregory J. Ressa and Justin H. Vilinsky (Real Estate); Marcy Geller, Sophie A. Staples and Morgan Otway (Tax); Greg Grogan, Alisa Tschorke and Kerri Thompson (Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits); Lori E. Lesser and Genevieve Dorment (IP); Peter Guryan and Kelly Karapetyan (Antitrust); and Mike Isby (Environmental). Associates Janet Yu and Chia-Chen Lee provided invaluable assistance in the early stages of the transaction.