FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Trademark Property Co. is under contract to purchase 3.5 acres adjacent to its 278,000-square-foot WestBend mixed-use development in Fort Worth’s University District. The parcel is located on University Drive, immediately south of WestBend along the Trinity River. Conceptual planning is underway to develop additional mixed-use space including ground-floor retail with either a hotel or multifamily and condo units above. A Hawthorne Suites hotel currently occupies the site.
DALLAS — INDECT USA, a provider of sensor-based parking guidance systems, has completed ultrasonic parking guidance installation at the Dallas Omni Hotel and Convention Center in downtown Dallas. The Dallas Omni Hotel is the first and only hotel in the United States to offer parking guidance. Installed as part of the $400 million Dallas Convention Center redevelopment, the parking guidance program features the installation of 347 parking sensors, as well as a network of LED signs informing drivers how many open parking spaces are available and where they can be found. The sensors are located above each parking space, offering signals to drivers that are visible from several hundred yards away of where open spaces can be found, and what type of parking is permitted in an individual space. Different colors indicate each space’s status: green for available, red for occupied, blue for Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) parking and white for one-hour parking. The LED signs at the end of each driving aisle also indicate how many spaces, and what types of spaces, are available in each parking aisle. Additionally, the sensors provide management benefits by collecting data about lengths of stay, occupancy and usage, which will help Omni Hotels …
HUNTSVILLE, ALA. — Hunter Hotel Advisors has brokered the $14 million sale of Homewood Suites Downtown Huntsville, a 101-room extended stay hotel in downtown Huntsville. The hotel was built in 2014 within the Twickenham Square urban center. Hunter Hotel Advisors represented the seller, PHD Hotels, in the transaction. A New York-based investment firm was the buyer.
MIAMI — Construction has begun on Miami Worldcenter, one of the largest urban mixed-use projects in the country, and its signature residential tower, Paramount Miami Worldcenter. This marks the start of the $1.7 billion, 27-acre development’s retail component. “You are literally going to see six blocks being developed all at the same time. This is basically step one of multiple steps in which you are going to see six buildings going vertical,” says Daniel Kodsi, developer and CEO of Paramount Miami Worldcenter. Miami Worldcenter will include Paramount and six other residential and office buildings, an 1,800-room Marriott Marquis and convention center, an intermodal hub and a retail and restaurant promenade. CoastalTishman, a joint venture between Miami-based Coastal Construction and New York-based Tishman Construction, is close to completing the installation of 400 pilings that will support the glass-clad tower designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects in collaboration with Paramount Miami Worldcenter’s in-house design team. Upon completion of the pilings, CoastalTishman will start building the tower’s foundation. The first phase of construction will focus on Paramount Miami Worldcenter, a 700-foot, 60-story residential skyscraper. The $500 million tower will feature one of the largest amenity decks in the country, spanning 90 feet above downtown …
ATLANTA — Hilton Worldwide has signed a franchise agreement to bring Candler Hotel Atlanta to its Curio – A Collection by Hilton brand. REM Associates LP owns the property, which will open as Candler Hotel Atlanta, Curio Collection by Hilton in late 2017 following extensive renovations. The hotel is situated in downtown Atlanta and neighbors Woodruff Park, Georgia State University’s Balzer Theatre and Rialto Center for the Arts. REM has selected Highgate Hotels to manage the hotel, which was formerly known as the Candler Building, a 110-year-old office building and Atlanta’s first steel skyscraper. Development Services Group is developing the hotel, and REM is partnering with The Beck Group for design-build architecture and construction services and NICOLEHOLLIS for interior design. Upon completion, the hotel will feature 265 guestrooms, an outdoor rooftop space and a grand lobby with a white marble staircase, original Tiffany windows and a restaurant and bar.
NEW YORK CITY — Fortuna Realty Group LLC has acquired a Wyndham-franchised hotel located at 37 W. 24th St. in Manhattan’s Flatiron District for $60 million. Fortuna plans to convert the 124-key hotel — built in 2008 — into a high-end boutique hotel. The investor bought the property out of bankruptcy at auction from an undisclosed seller. The hotel is situated directly off Fifth Avenue, and around the corner from Mario Batali’s acclaimed Italian marketplace Eataly and Madison Square Park. The hotel’s neighborhood has emerged as a popular location for New York’s technology, advertising, marketing and information technology sector, and is a hub for restaurants and nightlife. The new acquisition will join Fortuna’s portfolio of upscale “lifestyle hotels,” including Hotel Hugo and Hotel Indigo Chelsea, both in Manhattan, and The Garden City Hotel, located on Long Island. Wayne Cook and David Glanz of law firm Windels Marx LLP represented Fortuna in the transaction. U.S. Trust provided an undisclosed amount of acquisition financing. Based in New York City, Fortuna Realty Group LLC is a privately held real estate investment and development company with a focus in hospitality. — Katie Sloan
DALLAS — Construction has begun on Residence Inn Dallas/Southwest – Oak Cliff. Scheduled to open in mid-2017, the development will be a 103-room all-suite hotel located in the Canyon in Oak Cliff, a mixed-use development near the intersection of I-30 and North Westmoreland Road. The Canyon in Oak Cliff is a 200-acre development that will have 7,500 residential units, 1.2 million square feet of office space and 800,000 square feet of retail. Two multifamily communities totaling 290 units have already completed construction. The four-story hotel will contain a fitness center, pool, lobby market and 600 square feet of meeting space. Amenities include complimentary breakfast, free Wi-Fi and evening social events. Each unit will include a full kitchen with dining bar, bathroom with walk-in shower, sofa and desk. Civitas Capital Group and Atlantic Hotels Group are co-developing the project, and the property will be managed by an affiliate of Atlantic Hotels. Centennial Bank is providing senior financing for the project, and Civitas Capital is providing a mezzanine loan. EJES is the architect on the project, and Shahzay Construction is the general contractor.
MCLEAN, VA — Hilton Worldwide (NYSE: HLT) has announced plans to spin off the majority of its real estate business into a publicly traded REIT. The company also plans a second spinoff, putting its Hilton Grand Vacations timeshare business into a third publicly traded company. The company hopes the spinoffs will help focus Hilton Worldwide’s model on its core business. “The transactions we announced today will result in three pure-play companies, enabling dedicated management teams to fully activate their respective businesses,” says Christopher Nassetta, president and CEO of Hilton Worldwide. “We intend to have the appropriate leadership, strategies and capital structures in place to set up all three companies for further success.” If approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Hilton’s new REIT will include about 70 properties and 35,000 rooms, comprising one of the largest and most geographically diversified publicly traded lodging REITs. The REIT’s portfolio will contain luxury and upper-upscale assets in high-barrier-to-entry urban and convention markets, top resort destinations, select international regions and strategic airport locations. The new timeshare company will contain nearly 50 club resorts in the United States and Europe. The company will have a long-term license agreement with Hilton Worldwide to market, sell …
NEW YORK CITY — McSam Hotel Group, as developer, has broken ground for a 25,000-square-foot Choice Hotel at 337 W. 36th St. in Manhattan. Designed by Gene Kaufman Architect, the 23-story, 89-room hotel is rising on a site that is only 25 feet wide. The hotel will feature a stone base, brick façade and penthouse with an angled mirror-and-glass front.
ST. CHARLES, ILL. — A partnership between Banyan Investment Group and Compass Real Estate has acquired the Hilton Garden Inn in St. Charles, approximately 45 miles west of Chicago, for an undisclosed price. Oakwood Properties Inc. was the seller. The hotel opened in 2000 and includes 120 rooms and 4,400 square feet of meeting space. The facility also includes an indoor pool, fitness center and bistro-style restaurant. Attached to the hotel is an independently owned 18,000-square-foot conference and training center. The property will undergo a $2 million renovation of the guestrooms and public areas that is expected to be complete by March 2017.
