MIAMI — Dilido Beach Resort LLC, a joint venture between Lionstone Development and Flag Luxury, has received a $210 million loan for the refinancing of The Ritz-Carlton South Beach. Greenberg Traurig and Eastdil Secured arranged the loan, which will be used for planned capital improvements to the hotel, through lenders Cantor Commercial Real Estate (CCRE) and Societe Generale. The 375-room luxury hotel was originally built in 1953, and has been restored to reflect the original Morris Lapidus design. Located within walking distance of Ocean Drive and Lincoln Road in Miami, the hotel features an oceanfront infinity pool with private day beds, the DiLido Beach Club, two restaurants, a $2 million art collection featuring established and emerging artists, a 16,000-square-foot spa and 20,000 square feet of conference space. The resort underwent a $10 million renovation in 2012, according to reports by the South Florida Business Journal. The restoration, led by Miami-based interior designer Linda Zarifi, included the redesign of its 375 guest rooms. “We are very pleased to secure this financing for our flagship hotel,” says Paul Kanavos, CEO and chairman of Flag Luxury. “South Beach is a vibrant and diverse hospitality market and we are proud to be the leaders …
Hospitality
THE COLONY, TEXAS — Crescent Hotels & Resorts will manage a new Courtyard by Marriott hotel scheduled to open this spring in The Colony. Crescent Hotels & Resorts manages over 100 hotels and resorts in the U.S. and Canada. Jackson-Shaw is the developer of the 100-acre, master-planned development The Cascades at the Colony, which encompasses the hotel campus. The Courtyard will include 128 guest rooms, three meeting areas, a new restaurant with a full bar, a garden with a water feature and fire pit and a trail system.
SAN FRANCISCO — R.D. Olson Development has received a $49.8 million construction loan to build the 204-room Residence Inn by Marriott Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area community of San Carlos. The new hotel will be situated at Industrial Road and East San Carlos Avenue, halfway between San Francisco and San Jose. The four-story, select-service hotel will feature 1,500 square feet of meeting space, a convenience market, fitness center, outdoor pool and spa, sport court and outdoor patio with fire pit. The hotel is slated for completion in 2017. The three-year, floating-rate loan features two one-year extensions through a diversified financial services company. HFF’s James Fowler secured the financing on behalf of the developer.
Alpha Alternatives Secures $13M Loan for New Cambria Suites Hotel in Downtown Atlanta
by John Nelson
ATLANTA — Alpha Alternatives LLC has arranged a $13 million bridge loan for a new 141-room Cambria Suites hotel. The property, currently a vacant office building, is located at 110 Mitchell St. in downtown Atlanta. Alpha Alternatives arranged the loan on behalf of the unnamed borrower, which plans to break ground on the hotel conversion in the near future. Cambria Hotels, a Choice Hotels International brand, invested more than $3 million in equity for the project.
ST. CHARLES, MO. — Cullinan Properties will construct a 180-room Drury Inn and Suites hotel, which will be part of the Streets of St. Charles, a 27-acre mixed-use community. In addition to the seven-story hotel, a second parking deck will be added to the development providing over 300 additional spaces. Construction of the parking deck is already underway, and work on the hotel is expected to start in April. Both projects are slated for completion by the summer of 2017. The Drury Inn and Suites at Streets of St. Charles will feature king and queen suites and deluxe two-room suites. The hotel will offer meeting space, an indoor/outdoor pool, Wi-Fi and hot breakfast. Drury Inn and Suites is the latest of several new tenants to be announced at Streets of St. Charles including Orangetheory Fitness, PF Changs, Firebirds Wood Fired Grill and Noodles & Co. which are all currently under construction and scheduled to open this summer.
MILWAUKEE — Home2 Suites by Hilton has opened a new 110-room hotel in Milwaukee. Raymond Management Co. will own and manage the Home2 Suites by Hilton Milwaukee Airport. The pet-friendly hotel will feature fully equipped kitchens, modular furniture, Internet access, a combined laundry and fitness area, complimentary breakfast, indoor pool and outdoor grill area. The hotel also provides a 24-hour shuttle to and from the General Mitchell International Airport, which is one mile away. The hotel is located at 5880 S. Howell Ave.
ATLANTA — When it comes to successfully operating a full-service hotel there is no silver bullet for achieving success, but there are some smart steps owners and operators should take, say industry experts who spoke at the 28th annual Hunter Hotel Conference. The three-day event at the Marriott Marquis drew 1,300 attendees, up 8 percent from a year ago, according to conference organizers. In a panel titled “The Evolution of Full-Service Hotels,” professionals from Horwath HTL, GF Management, Davidson Hotels and Resorts, Legacy Ventures and Hyatt Hotel Corp. emphasized time and again that full-service hotels are in no way dying. They are simply evolving, and owners and operators must also evolve if they have hopes of being successful. “It’s still a street corner business,” said Thom Geshay, senior vice president of business development for Davidson Hotels and Resorts. “You have to look at the market you’re in, you have to define and profile your customer and give them what they need.” 1. Get Creative in Controlling Costs — Full-service hotels have a slew of amenities, and each amenity presents a new place to create revenues. “Our job is to find something that is broken or not maximized in some way …
HUNTSVILLE, ALA. — RCP Cos. has inked a deal with Marriott International to bring a 150-room AC Hotel to CityCentre at Big Spring, a $100 million mixed-use development in Huntsville. In partnership with Yedla Management Co., Marriott will bring the European-inspired hotel brand to only its 10th market in the U.S. Construction will begin this summer. Located on Williams Avenue, the hotel will feature a lounge area, kitchen with self-serve European fare, complimentary Wi-Fi, mobile check-in and check-out and a 24-hour fitness center. Yedla plans to bring another hotel concept yet to be named to CityCentre at Big Spring, according to RCP.
BOISE, IDAHO — PMZ Realty Capital has arranged a $27 million refinancing for a four-property hotel portfolio in Boise. The Boise Airport Hotel Portfolio includes the Fairfield Inn by Marriott Boise, Hampton Inn Boise – Airport, Holiday Inn Boise Airport and the La Quinta Inn & Suites Boise Airport. The portfolio contains more than 300 hotel rooms.
ATLANTA — There are many moving parts when refreshing or renovating a hotel property, and the key is engaging everyone involved early and often. This was the message delivered on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, by a panel of hospitality experts during the 28th annual Hunter Hotel Conference held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis. Titled “Design to Inspire: Creating the Unexpected,” the breakout session featured a four-member panel that included Libby Patrick, president of Atlanta-based interior design firm Sims Patrick Studio; Bethany Warner, director of design management for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide; Sam Cicero Jr., president of Plainfield, Ill.-based Cicero’s Development Corp., a general contractor specializing in commercial renovation; and Alan Benjamin, president of Boulder, Colo.-based Benjamin West, a furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E) purchasing firm. Johnathan Nehmer, chairman and founder of Rockville, Md.-based architecture firm Jonathan Nehmer + Associates, served as moderator. The session was the first design-focused panel in the conference’s history. “How do we create the unexpected in design?” asked Nehmer. “How do we put that ‘wow’ factor out there and what role does design play in the hospitality experience? What we’re going to talk about today is how designers and contractors and purchasing agents do that.” …