SAVANNAH, GA. — HOS Management has begun construction on the new Fairfield Inn & Suites-Historic Savannah at 135 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in downtown Savannah. The Savannah-based developer has also begun building a public parking garage located adjacent to the hotel. The hotel will feature 140 guest rooms and meeting space that can accommodate up to 385 people. HOS Management expects to deliver the hotel and parking garage in July 2016. The company is also in the design/development stage for a new Aloft hotel in Savannah’s Historic District and has a future hotel in the pipeline at 321 Montgomery St. in Savannah.
MIAMI BEACH, FLA. — The city of Miami Beach commission has selected developer Portman Holdings and architect John Portman & Associates to develop and design the $405 million Miami Beach Convention Headquarter Hotel. The selection allows for the city manager to negotiate the terms of the development and ground lease for the hotel. The 800-room hotel will feature several pools, a fitness center, spa, business center and multiple food and beverage outlets, including a café, full-service restaurant and rooftop lounge. Another feature of the hotel is a grand welcoming gateway at the main intersection of 17th Street and Convention Center Drive. The hotel development will not use any taxpayer dollars — Portman’s plan is 100 percent privately funded with both debt and equity sources. The design team includes local architect Revuelta Architecture International and landscape architect West 8.
PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia Hospitality Partners L.P. has sold a majority interest of the Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia to Carey Watermark Investors Inc. The 299-room hotel features 26,000 square feet of meeting space, two food and beverage outlets and the Richel D’Ambra Spa and Salon. The new owner plans to implement a comprehensive $21.3 million, or $71,000 per key, renovation of the property beginning in the third quarter. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company will continue to manage the property. Hodges Ward Elliott represented the seller in the transaction. Financial terms of the sale were not released.
HOUSTON — SpringHill Suites by Marriott Houston Northwest, located at 20303 Chasewood Park Drive in Houston, is now open. The new hotel is a 139-room, all-suite property located along Highway 249 and Chasewood Park Drive and provides access to shopping, restaurants and entertainment districts. Local attractions include Vintage Park, Willowbrook Mall, Old Town Spring, Sam Houston Race Park and University Park. MAS Lodging Capital LLC, the sponsor, is a joint venture between Oldham Goodwin and TEKMAK Development that focuses on the acquisition and development of franchised hotel assets in markets throughout Texas.
ARLINGTON, VA. — Mesa West Capital has originated a $55 million mortgage loan to refinance the Hilton Crystal City, a 393-room hotel located in Arlington, a Virginia suburb of Washington, D.C. Nicholas Seidenberg and Michael Zelin of Eastdil Secured arranged the loan through Mesa West on behalf of the borrower, The JBG Cos. The non-recourse, floating-rate loan features interest-only payments for the full term, which is initially three years but features extension options. JBG renovated the hotel in September 2013, which helped boost the hotel’s occupancy and Average Daily Rate, according to Mesa West.
LEXINGTON, KY. — Hilton Worldwide has opened its first Home2 Suites by Hilton in Kentucky and its 53rd overall of the brand. The 103-room hotel, known as Home2 Suites by Hilton Lexington University/Medical Center, is located at 126 E. Lowry Lane and within three miles of downtown Lexington, area hospitals and the University of Kentucky. The hotel’s owner, Cohen Realty Inc., developed the hotel and has tapped Vista Host Inc. to manage it. The hotel features an indoor saline pool and an outdoor patio, as well as some of the brand’s trademark amenities such as the Oasis lobby, the Home2 MKT for grab-and-go items, the Spin2 Cycle (a combined laundry and fitness area) and complimentary continental breakfast at the “Inspired Table.”
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Strategic Hotels & Resorts has purchased the Four Seasons Austin hotel for $197 million. The 291-room hotel is located on 2.3 acres overlooking Lady Bird Lake in the midst of the Central Business District of Austin. The hotel features 28 suites, 18,000 square feet of indoor meeting space, two food and beverage outlets and a 5,500-square-foot spa. Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc. is a real estate investment trust that owns and provides value-enhancing asset management of high-end hotels and resorts in the United States and Europe. The company has ownership interests in 19 properties with a total of 8,616 rooms and 893,000 square feet of multi-purpose meeting and banqueting space.
HARRISON, N.J. — Advance Realty is developing an AC Hotel by Marriott in the Riverbend District, the company’s 35-acre redevelopment project in Harrison. The 85,000-square-foot hotel will feature 150 guest rooms, a bar and lounge area, a breakfast area, outdoor seating, a meeting room, fitness center and a lobby. Additionally, the hotel will feature more than 4,300 square feet of retail and restaurant space, which will complement the residential, retail and office space that is under development in the Riverbend District.
BOSTON — Moody National REIT I Inc. has entered into a contract to acquire Hampton Inn Boston for an aggregate purchase price of $57 million, excluding acquisition costs. The 227-room hotel is located within close proximity to Boston Logan International Airport and five miles from downtown Boston. The acquisition of the hotel is subject to substantial conditions to closing.
OAKLAND, CALIF. — DiNapoli Capital Partners has acquired the 489-room Marriott City Center in downtown Oakland for a reported $84 million. The hotel is located at 1001 Broadway. The property is attached to the Oakland Convention Center. It is one block from a BART station. The seller, CIM Group, renovated the hotel in 2011, modernizing all common areas and guest rooms. It also partnered with the City of Oakland to renovate the hotel and convention center’s combined 89,000 square feet of meeting space. CIM acquired the Oakland Marriott in 2007. It was the company’s first asset in downtown Oakland. The firm currently maintains a Bay Area portfolio of about 3 million square feet of Class A space. CIM has disposed of a total of 570 residential units, 908 hotel rooms and about 1,420,000 square feet of retail space, including this latest sale, since the beginning of the year.