COLUMBUS, OHIO — Kaufman Development plans to redevelop 78 residential units in the top 24 floors of LeVeque Tower in Columbus. Tower 10, a local investment group principally owned by Don Casto and Robert Meyers, purchased the 46-story building in 2011 and began immediate renovation work on the lower floors and exterior including facility upgrades, a lobby redesign and streetscape improvements. Kaufman’s residential units will include marble flooring, updated appliance packages, stone and quartz countertops, spa-like bathrooms, high-efficiency home technology and large closets with extensive shelving. Residents will also have access to a full floor of storage. The rental units will offer one-bedroom options ranging from 750 to 1,150 square feet, and two bedroom options ranging from 1,250 to 2,400 square feet. The condominiums will include both flat and duplex units. Occupancy is set to begin in the spring-summer season of 2016
HOUSTON — HREC Investment Advisors has arranged the sale of the 294-room Crowne Plaza Houston Northwest Brookhollow located in Houston. The buyer, Unique Hotel Management Group, is a regional hotel investor. The seller is a special servicer that acquired the hotel through foreclosure. Mike Armstrong and Hank Wolpert of HREC represented the seller during the transaction. The hotel is located in Brookhollow in northwest Houston on U.S. Highway 290 and is within a short drive to Houston’s Energy Corridor. The hotel is located near major shopping, sports and entertainment venues in Houston.
DEARBORN, MICH. — Savills Studley has been chosen to market the sale of the Royal Dearborn hotel and convention center in Dearborn. The 773-room, 854,000-square-foot hotel, located on 32 acres at 600 Town Center Drive, is across the street from the world headquarters of Ford Motor Co. The Royal Dearborn is the second largest hotel in Michigan. The hotel features 55,602 square feet of meeting and exhibition space comprised of a 17,000-square-foot grand ballroom, a rotunda and numerous meeting and breakout rooms. The hotel also offers two food and beverage outlets, an indoor swimming pool and fitness center, business center, gift shop and expansive outdoor parking. “There are numerous repositioning options for the property, including splitting the asset into two smaller hotels, or even reducing the size of the hotel component by converting the top floors to residential use and transforming parts of the ground-level space into retail,” says Marc Magazine, executive managing director of Savills Studley’s U.S. Capital Markets Hotel Group.
RALEIGH, N.C. — Concord Hospitality has sold the Renaissance and Hyatt House Raleigh North Hills hotels in Raleigh for a combined $109 million. Companies owned by an unnamed global investment fund acquired the two hotels through cash and an assumption of debt. The two properties anchor North Hills, a 1 million-square-foot mixed-use development that serves as a live-work-play destination for Raleigh residents and businesses. Concord will continue to manage the two assets under a long-term management agreement. Mark Elliott of Hodges Ward Elliott and Tom Ives of CBRE Hotels represented the seller in the transaction.
ST. PAUL, MINN. — Stahl Construction has begun interior demolition for a planned 149-room, five-story Hyatt Place hotel located at 180 Kellogg Boulevard East in the historic United States Post Office and Custom House building in the Lowertown neighborhood of St. Paul. The $19.7 million project will include remodeling of approximately 145,000 square feet on the first five floors. The hotel will be completed in spring 2016. Nelson Construction & Development hired Stahl to complete the hotel portion of the mixed-use redevelopment. The new Custom House will also include 202 luxury apartments on the upper floors as well as retail and commercial components. LodgeWorks Partners LP will operate the Hyatt Place upon completion.
NEW YORK CITY — American Realty Capital Hospitality Trust Inc. (ARC Hospitality) has agreed to acquire a portfolio of 13 hotels from affiliates of Noble Investment Group LLC for $300 million. The Noble portfolio includes 12 select-service and extended-stay hotels and one full-service hotel, totaling 1,913 rooms. The hotels are located in Boston; Atlanta; Monterey, Calif.; Columbus, Ohio; Fort Worth, Texas; Chicago; Minneapolis; Birmingham, Ala.; and Northern and Central New Jersey. The hotels are franchised by major global brands including Hyatt Hotels, Hilton Hotels & Resorts and Marriott International. Hotel flags include Hyatt Place, Hilton Garden Inn, Hyatt House, Courtyard by Marriott and Hilton. ARC Hospitality was represented by Hunton & Williams LLP. The acquisition is subject to franchisor approvals and the completion of due diligence; the acquisition is expected to close in three separate tranches (which are not conditioned on each other) during the fourth quarter of 2015 and first quarter of 2016.
ATASCADERO, CALIF. – The 130-room SpringHill Suites by Marriott Paso Robles Atascadero has opened in the San Luis Obispo submarket of Atascadero. It is located at 900 El Camino Real. The hotel is within minutes of more than 300 wineries throughout the Paso Robles/Atascadero Wine Country. The property also contains the Union and Vine Ranch Kitchen restaurant/bar, as well as more than 6,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space.
SCHAUMBURG, ILL. — Paramount Lodging Advisors has arranged $8 million in refinancing for the 134-room, six-story Hyatt House hotel in Schaumburg. An undisclosed large regional bank was the lender in the transaction. Atira Hospitality, which operates the hotel, is currently implementing a substantial capital improvement plan that will include upgrading all rooms, corridors and first-floor public space.
CHANDLER, ARIZ. – The Siegel Group has purchased the 355-room Legacy Suites in Casa Grande for $8.3 million. The extended-stay hotel is located at 540 Cacheris Court. The Class A building was constructed in 2008. This was the firm’s first acquisition in Arizona. The seller, a large developer in Arizona, was represented by ABI Multifamily’s Rue Bax, Alon Shnitzer, Eddie Chang, John Kobierowski, and Doug Lazovick.
NEEDHAM, MASS. — Ultima Hospitality has acquired the Sheraton Needham Hotel, located at 100 Cabot St. in Needham, for an undisclosed price. The 247-room hotel recently underwent an extensive renovation. The new guest rooms feature Sheraton Sweet Sleeper beds, complimentary WiFi, individual climate control and 37-inch LCD televisions. Additionally, the hotel features a fitness center, heated indoor pool, Link Café and Bar, and 15,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space. The name of the seller was not released.