NEW YORK CITY — HKS Capital Partners has secured $109 million in financing to complete the SLS Midtown South, a boutique hotel at 444 Park Avenue South in New York City. Moin Development acquired a 14-story office building at the site in 2011 for $45 million and partnered with SBE to develop the $150 million SLS Midtown South, which is slated to open next spring. The 20-story hotel will feature a 6,000-square-foot sub-cellar. Ayush Kapahi and Gabrielle Simon of HKS Capital Partners arranged the financing, which was provided by Fortress Investment Group.
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of Manor Inn College Station Aggieland, a 116-room hospitality property located at 2504 Texas Ave. S. in College Station. Rahul Bijlani, Eric Guerrero and Michael Yu of Marcus & Millichap’s Houston office marketed the property on behalf of the seller, a private investor. The buyer, a limited liability company, was also secured and sourced by Yu, Bijlani, Agrama Mannapperuma and Tyler Bean of the firm’s Houston office.
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. — A joint venture between Carey Watermark Investors Inc. and Gencom Group has purchased a majority interest in the Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale, an upscale hotel in Fort Lauderdale. The property comprises 166 hotel rooms, 34 third-party owned condominium hotel units and 28 third-party owned residential units. The hotel features 25,000 square feet of meeting and function space, an 8,500-square-foot spa, outdoor infinity pool, 29,000-square-foot pool deck, fitness center, business center and four managed food and beverage outlets. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co. will continue to operate the hotel. According to the South Florida Business Journal, the hotel sold for $45 million. Hodges Ward Elliott represented the seller, RCFL Investor LLC, an affiliate of Gencom. The new ownership is planning a $9 million renovation to the hotel’s lobby, spa and main restaurant that should wrap up in the fourth quarter of this year. The transaction is the third joint venture purchase between Carey Watermark and Gencom. The other two transactions include Ritz-Carlton, Philadelphia and Ritz-Carlton, Key Biscayne Miami. Together, the three transactions represent a total investment of more than $500 million.
TALLAHASSEE, FLA. — Grandbridge Real Estate Capital has closed a $25.6 million first mortgage refinancing on Doubletree by Hilton, a 243-room hotel in downtown Tallahassee. The property is located within walking distance to the Florida Capitol Building, Florida State University and Florida A&M University. The hotel features a full-service bar and restaurant, banquet and meeting rooms, fitness center, swimming pool and parking garage. Bill Mattice and Phillip Cox of Grandbridge’s Greenville, S.C., office arranged the loan through Goldman Sachs in a CMBS loan structure.
PALM SPRINGS, CALIF. — Palisades Hospitality Group (PHG) has purchased the 57-room Colony Palms Hotel in Palm Springs for $24 million. The hotel is located at 572 North Indian Canyon Drive. Colony Palms is situated just one block off the city’s main downtown strip. It was built in the 1930s. Amenities include a full-service spa and the Purple Palm restaurant and bar. PHG plans to upgrade and enhance the property over the next several months. It will also create 1,200 square feet of meeting space for small groups and events that can accommodate up to 50 people. The hotel has a colored past, as it was allegedly once owned by mobster Al Westheimer. At the time, it featured a casino, speakeasy and brothel that attracted famous Hollywood guests like Clark Gable, Carole Lombard and Humphrey Bogart. The hotel was purchased in the 1940s by Robert and Amanda Leeds-Howard, the owners of famed racehorse Seabiscuit. It underwent a substantial $17 million renovation in 2008. That renovation was overseen by Martyn Bullard-Lawrence, who was named one of Architectural Digest’s top 100 interior designers. He is also known for his role on Bravo’s “Million Dollar Designers.” PHG will operate the Colony Palms under …
BEDFORD PARK, ILL. — Developer Weglarz Co. and general contractor William A. Randolph have completed the development of Hyatt Place Hotel at Midway Airport in Bedford Park, a Chicago suburb. Located at 6500 Cicero Ave., the six-story property features 148 rooms, an indoor swimming pool, fitness center, putting green, bar/café, lounge and meeting room facilities. Legat Architects provided architectural design services and Tech 3 Consulting served as civil engineer for the project.
WESTBOROUGH, MASS. — Ultima Hospitality has acquired the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Boston – Westborough in Westborough, approximately 35 miles form downtown Boston, for an undisclosed price. The 223-room hotel features 13,300 square feet of meeting space, a full bar and restaurants and an indoor pool. The property recently underwent a renovation of its common areas and Ultima plans to renovate the guestrooms. The name of the seller was not released.
CONCORD, N.H. — Cronheim Hotel Capital has secured $5.9 million in financing for Holiday Inn in Concord. Lisa McMahon and Andrew Stewart of Cronheim Hotel Capital arranged the 10-year loan, which features a 30-year amortization schedule, for the borrower, an affiliate of Chartwell Hotels. Renovated in 2010, the hotel features 122 rooms and 5,300 square feet of meeting space.
ATLANTA — A partnership led by Square Mile Capital Management LLC has sold the W Hotel Atlanta Downtown to Ashford Hospitality Trust for roughly $56.8 million. The 237-room hotel anchors the Allen Plaza mixed-use complex in downtown Atlanta and is within walking distance of the MARTA Civic Center Metro station, Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coca-Cola. The partnership acquired the W Hotel in 2010 via deed in lieu of foreclosure. Since 2010, the hotel’s net operating income has tripled, with average occupancy currently at 73 percent and the average daily room rate above $200. Concurrent with the completion of the acquisition, Ashford Hospitality Trust financed the hotel with a $40.5 million non-recourse mortgage loan. The hospitality REIT has also retained Starwood Hotels to manage the property.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Hodges Ward Elliott has brokered the sale of the St. Regis Washington, D.C., a 182-room luxury hotel located at the intersection of 16th and K streets, roughly two miles from the White House. Mark Elliott and Rudy Reudelhuber of Hodges Ward Elliott represented the seller in the transaction. The firm also advised the buyer, Al Rayyan Tourism Investment Co. (ARTIC), on procuring acquisition financing from Goldman Sachs. St. Regis Washington, D.C., will continue to operate under the St. Regis brand. ARTIC’s purchase also includes an adjacent parcel that is zoned for 22,000 square feet of hotel, office, retail, parking and/or residential use. Qatar-based ARTIC is the international hospitality subsidiary of Al Faisal Holding Co. ARTIC owns 32 hotels in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and North America, including the Radisson Blu Chicago and The Manhattan at Times Square.