Carmaker may sell building if it can't borrow $500M; Pitch to be made to Detroit pension funds
Robert Snell and Christine MacDonald / The Detroit News
General Motors Corp. wants to borrow about $500 million from one or both of Detroit's pension funds to refinance the Renaissance Center, the automaker's iconic world headquarters, in a move that could pump cash into the financially strapped company's coffers.
GM officials are scheduled to make a preliminary investment pitch Thursday to the city's Police & Fire Retirement System and are trying to schedule a meeting with the pension fund representing general city employees, The Detroit News has learned.
If a deal cannot be reached, GM will consider selling the landmark and leasing space within the RenCen, John Blanchard, GM's executive director of worldwide real estate, said Monday.
The moves come as the automaker is trying to raise about $5 billion through asset sales and borrowing to survive the worst auto sales market in 15 years. Already on the shopping block are the Hummer brand, GM's medium-duty truck business, vast amounts of real estate and shuttered manufacturing plants.
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