MIAMI — Eyzenberg & Co. has arranged a $21.3 million construction loan for the Towers at Blue Lagoon, a planned mixed-use development featuring a multifamily community and hotel space. The borrower and developer, the Weiss Group of Cos., will build Phase I of the project to include 428 multifamily units across two buildings. The property will offer studio to three-bedroom floor plans. The master plan also includes two hotels. The site is located at 4865 NW 7th St., seven miles west of downtown Miami. Kobi Karp is designing the property’s multifamily component. Robert Ginsberg and David Eyzenberg of Eyzenberg & Co. arranged the loan on behalf of Weiss, which has owned the land since the 1970s.
Hospitality
ATLANTA — The 32nd annual Hunter Hotel Investment Conference has been canceled for 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The conference, which brings together hotel investors, managers, developers, lenders and brokers, was originally scheduled for March 18-20 in downtown Atlanta, but was postponed indefinitely March 12 by Hunter Hotel Advisors. After much deliberation, the Atlanta-based organization decided to outright cancel the 2020 conference. “Through continually following the published guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), and our local health officials we simply do not want to risk the health of any of our attendees or the people with whom they come into contact,” according to a statement that appears on the Hunter Hotel Conference website. In 2019, the conference attracted more than 1,850 attendees from across the Southeast. As of this writing, there are 467,184 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU). There are 1,336 confirmed cases in Fulton County, where the conference typically takes place. The next Hunter Hotel Investment Conference is now scheduled for March 9-11, 2021.
DURANGO, COLO. — Lodging Partners, a member of Hotel Brokers International, teamed up with HREC Investment Advisors to broker the sale of Residence Inn by Marriott Durango, a 66-room hotel located at 21691 US Highway 160 West in Durango. A regional owner/operator of premium-branded, select-service hotels acquired the property for an undisclosed price. The pet-friendly hotel features studio, one-bedroom suite and two-bedroom suite guest rooms that feature fully equipped kitchens with refrigerators, microwaves and coffee makers. Hotel amenities include a fitness center, an indoor pool and whirlpool, free breakfast, high-speed wireless internet, laundry facilities and complimentary onsite parking. Ford Barton of Lodging Partners and Jeffrey Duni of HREC Investment Advisors led the marketing and negotiations on behalf of the seller.
HAMILTON, OHIO — Preston Hollow Capital has completed a $38 million tax-exempt bond financing on behalf of the city of Hamilton, which is located 20 miles north of Cincinnati. The bonds will be used to support the redevelopment of the former Champion Paper Mill into a 20-acre sports and entertainment complex. The project will consist of a 650,000-square-foot sports complex and a 360,000-square-foot hotel, which will include convention, retail and commercial space in addition to the 235 hotel rooms. The Hamilton Community Authority issued the bonds, which were placed with Dallas-based Preston Hollow. Piper Sandler served as underwriter on the financing. Squire Patton Boggs LLP served as bond counsel and Bradley Payne Advisors LLC served as financial advisor.
KARNES CITY, TEXAS — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of the 69-room La Quinta Inn & Suites by Wyndham Karnes City-Kenedy, about 75 miles southeast of San Antonio. The property, which had a list price of $5.4 million, offers a pool, business center and complimentary breakfast. Andrew Frosch, Allan Miller and Chris Gomes of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, a private investor, in the transaction. The trio, along with Joseph Manuel of Marcus & Millichap, also procured the Texas-based buyer. Both parties requested anonymity.
Four Seasons New York Offers All 368 Rooms Free to Medical Workers Treating Coronavirus
by Alex Patton
NEW YORK CITY — The Four Seasons Hotel New York in Manhattan has made all of its 368 rooms available free of charge to medical workers including doctors, nurses and other personnel treating patients in the epicenter of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, according to a statement by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The hotel industry has suffered a severe decline in demand due to “stay at home” orders and travel restrictions nationwide, according to recent data from CBRE. The Los Angeles-based real estate giant estimates that revenue per available room RevPAR, a key financial metric for the industry, will decline 37 percent in 2020, with a contraction of more than 60 percent in the second quarter. Prior to the spread of COVID-19 into the United States, CBRE had forecasted a 0.1 percent decline in RevPAR on a national basis in 2020. Several hotels in New York City and other major markets are temporary utilizing their vacant rooms to lodge medical personnel and some non-critical patients.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA) has launched “Hotels for Hope,” a new initiative that aims to connect participating hotels with the health community struggling to find housing and support as the COVID-19 public health crisis grows. Washington, D.C.-based AHLA has identified more than 6,500 properties nationwide that are can work with the U.S. Department of Health, Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Army CORPS of Engineers to provide access to hotel properties to support the health community and our nation’s first responders and local emergency management and public health agencies. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the hotel industry is seeing vacancy rates soar across the United States, with some markets, including Boston, Seattle and Austin, reporting more than 80 percent vacancy. Markets including Chicago are reporting single-digit occupancy rates. More than 4 million hotel jobs could be lost in the coming weeks, according to AHLA. In mid-March, the U.S. Travel Association and AHLA requested $150 billion from the federal government for economic relief as the travel sector is especially affected by the coronavirus. AHLA is working to establish a national database with the HHS so that local, state and federal officials will be able to …
LOS ANGELES — As the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to develop, CBRE Hotels Research has released a revised Viewpoint Hotel 2020 Outlook. The firm now expects gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the United States to slow to 0.4 percent in 2020, down from its previous estimate of 1.9 percent. CBRE expects a sharp drop in economic activity in the second quarter, stabilization as early as third-quarter 2020 and a recovery underway by the fourth quarter. “Governments throughout the world are implementing monetary and fiscal stimulus to try to prevent a more long-term global recession,” says Jamie Lane, senior managing economist with CBRE. “Our current expectations are that this stimulus, as well as pent-up demand, will lead to a substantial rebound in economic activity in 2021.” Decline in lodging demand The lodging sector’s two main challenges are a contraction in overall economic activity and the need for social distancing that encourages staying at home in small groups and not traveling. As seen in other countries, these monetary and social restrictions will cause a severe decline in the lodging demand in the United States. CBRE’s updated forecast shows a 37 percent decline in revenue per available room (RevPAR) for the …
TUSCALOOSA, ALA. — SLH Tuscaloosa LLC will develop a 120-room Southern Living-branded hotel in Tuscaloosa. Included on the 38.7-acre site will be 32 cottages available for individual sale. The property is situated at the intersection of Rice Mine Road North and McFarlane Boulevard West, across the Black Warrior River from the University of Alabama. The 124,000-square-foot property will include a restaurant and rooftop lounge on the fourth floor, as well as a wellness center that will include massage and facial therapy rooms, a nail salon, blowout hair salon, exercise and yoga classes, fitness center outfitted with Peloton equipment, a pool, hot tubs and men’s and women’s locker rooms. Kennedy Funding provided the developer with a $2.8 million loan to acquire the land, which sold for a total of $5.5 million. A timeline for construction was not disclosed. There are 23 hotels currently in the Southern Living collection, ranging from Texas to Florida to Maryland.
Tower Capital Secures $20.1M Development Financing for Hilton Home2 Suites in Mesa, Arizona
by Amy Works
MESA, ARIZ. — Tower Capital has secured $20.1 million in development financing for a Home2 Suites by Hilton in Mesa. The name of the borrower was not released. Concord Eastridge is developing the four-story, 111-key hotel, which will be situated on the 18th hole of the Longbow Golf Course in Mesa’s Falcon District. The Home2 Suites by Hilton brand features lifestyle-focused amenities, including suites with separate living and bedroom space and a “working wall” that incorporates a kitchen and flexible working/media space. Construction started in February with completion slated for the first quarter of 2021.