BALTIMORE — MCR Development LLC has completed a full renovation of the lobby and guestrooms of the 126-room Hampton Inn Baltimore Downtown Convention Center. The lobby offers views of Oriole Park at Camden Yards and features baseball glove seats, baseball-themed floor tiles and baseball bat lighting. The hotel is located adjacent to the Baltimore Convention Center and within walking distance of the University of Maryland Medical Center, M&T Bank Stadium and the new Downtown Harrahs Horseshoe Casino opening this fall.
Hospitality
NEW YORK CITY — DiamondRock Hospitality Co. has acquired the 282-room Hilton Garden Inn/Times Square Central in New York for $127.2 million, or $451,000 per guestroom. The hotel, located on 42nd Street between Avenue of the Americas and Broadway in the heart of Times Square, opened this month. The hotel features floor-to-ceiling glass windows and each guestroom features a 50-inch LCD HDTV, refrigerator, microwave and other amenities. The hotel also includes a 24-hour self-service business center and fitness facility. DiamondRock Hospitality Co. expects the hotel to generate approximately $5 million of adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization in 2014. Highgate Hotels will operate the hotel.
PLANO, TEXAS – Hilton Worldwide has opened the Hilton Dallas/Plano Granite Park hotel, a 299-unit Hilton Hotels & Resorts property, in the Granite Park master-planned community just north of Dallas. Granite Park is a 90-acre mixed-use development located at the intersection of the Sam Rayburn Tollway and Dallas North Tollway. Companies with a presence in the area include Hewlett Packard, Dr. Pepper/Snapple Group, PepsiCo, Siemens and J.C. Penny. BOKA Powell was the architect for the hotel. Amenities at the hotel include the on-site Carso Mediterranean Grill, a fitness center and pool. The hotel also attaches to a 30,000-square-foot conference center.
LUBBOCK, TEXAS — A 103-room, four-story Courtyard by Marriott has opened in Lubbock, home of Texas Tech University. The 76,118-square-foot hotel is located at Marsha Sharp Freeway and Avenue V, near the Texas Tech Campus. Dallas-based Mayse & Associates Inc. was the project’s architect. The hotel’s main tower is painted “Raider Red,” the same color worn by the school’s Red Raider athletic teams. Lubbock-based Greenstreet Inc. built the hotel, which is owned and managed by Midland-based Insignia Hospitality Group.
SUGAR LAND, TEXAS — HFF has arranged acquisition financing for the Hyatt Place Houston/Sugar Land, a 214-room hotel in Sugar Land, just south of Houston Proper. HFF worked on behalf of the borrower, Noble Investment Group, placing a five-year, floating-rate loan with Texas Capital Bank. The hotel is located on 3.7 acres at 16730 Creek Bend Drive at the intersection of Highway 6 and U.S. 59. The hotel opened in 2010 with 6,000 square feet of meeting space, a pool, gym and business center. John Bourret and Colby Mueck led HFF’s team representing Noble.
DENTON, TEXAS — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of two hospitality properties in Denton. The properties are the 88-room La Quinta Inn & Suites and the 92-room Holiday Inn Express & Suites. Chris Gomes and Allan Miller of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, a Dallas-based company. A Dallas-based private individual purchased the property. La Quinta is located at 4465 I-35. Holiday Inn is located at 4485 N. I-35.
HARRISON, N.J. — Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has opened its second eco-wise Element brand hotel in New Jersey. Located in Harrison, Element Harrison – Newark features 138 sustainable rooms and a light-filled design throughout the hotel. Designed by New York City-based HWKN, the hotel features a distinctive façade that takes a nod from the innovative Element by Westin brand. Additionally, the hotel offers a 24-hour fitness center, an indoor pool, and a 1,500-square-foot meeting room. Developed by Ironstate Holdings and The Pegasus Group, the hotel will be part of the partnership’s mixed-use development that will comprise 2,600 residential residences and 80,000 square feet of street-level retail space. The hotel is owned by Harrison Hotel 1, a joint venture entity of Ironstate Holdings LLC and The Pegasus Group, and managed by Crescent Hotels & Resorts.
PHOENIX – The 114-room Holiday Inn & Suites Phoenix has received a $9.3-million loan. The property is located two miles south of the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. It is also situated near Arizona State University. The property was built in 2009. The non-recourse, fixed-rate, CMBS first-mortgage was secured by KeyBank Real Estate Capital.
FORT WORTH — A 124-room Marriott Courtyard is set for construction in Fort Worth’s Stockyards National Historic District. Sunbelt-CFX LLC, which was represented by Lynn Dowdle of Dowdle Real Estate, acquired the 96,000-square-foot site located at 2533 N. Main St. Robert Grunnah and Lily Chang represented the seller, Exhibits Building Partnership. Construction is expected to begin immediately.
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. — HFF has arranged the sale of il Lugano, a 105-suite luxury boutique hotel located at 3333 N.E. 32nd Ave. on the Intracoastal Waterway in Fort Lauderdale. Completed in 2008, the hotel features the da Campo Osteria restaurant, a lobby bar, outdoor event patio, outdoor resort-style pool with a sundeck, 10-slip private marina, fitness center, adjacent water taxi station, private parking garage and approximately 4,000 square feet of meeting space. Max Comess, Daniel Peek, Denny Meikleham, Scott Wadler, Alexandra Lalos and Cecily Nazario of HFF represented the seller, Il Lugano LLC, in the transaction. Il Lugano LLC is owned by the SageCrest Liquidating Trust, which is managed by John Huber, a managing director at SOLIC Capital Advisors. The buyer was an affiliate of Bridgewater, Mass.-based Claremont Cos.