NEW YORK CITY — An investment consortium led by The Witkoff Group and majority backer Jynwel Capital and its investors has closed on the acquisition of the 47-story Helmsley Park Lane Hotel at 36 Central Park South for $660 million. Other consortium partners include New Valley LLC, Highgate Holdings and Macklowe Properties. The investment group plans to make upgrades to improve operations at the 605-key, 446,000-square-foot luxury hotel and rebrand it as the Park Lane New York. Wells Fargo and Criterion Real Estate Capital provided financing for the acquisition. Going forward, Highgate Hotels will manage the property. The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust was the seller.
YORK, PA. — MBA Hotel Brokers Inc. has arranged the sale of the 134-key, five-story Holiday Inn Express & Suites in York. John Downes, associate broker with MBA Hotel Brokers Inc., represented the seller, GIA Associates, and the buyer, Bergen Hospitality LLC, in the transaction. Built in 1993 and converted to a Holiday Inn Express & Suites in 2002 by the sellers, the hotel underwent extensive renovations totaling more than $1.8 million during 2012 and 2013.
SAN DIEGO — The 176-room Courtyard San Diego Old Town and the 123-room Fairfield Inn & Suites San Diego Old Town have received $50 million in debt financing. They are located at 2435 Jefferson Street and 3900 Old Town Ave., respectively. Both hotels are Marriott brands and are owned by a joint venture between Rockpoint Group, LLC and Clearview Hotel Capital, LLC. The floating-rate loan carries a three-year initial term and two optional 12-month extensions. It was secured by Mathew Comfort, Reid McGlameryand Mike Huthof Jones Lang LaSalle. The loan was provided by a domestic bank.
ATLANTA — Cascade Investments, a privately owned investment arm of Bill Gates, has purchased Four Season Hotel Atlanta in Midtown Atlanta for an undisclosed amount. Cascade purchased the hotel from Host Hotels & Resorts, which has owned it since 1998. Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta opened in 1997 and features 244 guestrooms, 18 luxury suites, a 7,790-square-foot private spa and fitness center and two upscale restaurants. The hotel occupies the first 19 floors of a 54-story tower. Toronto-based Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts will continue to operate the hotel. Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts is owned jointly by Cascade, Kingdom Holding Co. and Triples Holdings. The transaction also includes the acquisition of 99,000 square feet of office space in the tower. The Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta is Cascade’s second Four Seasons acquisition in recent weeks.
MEMPHIS, TENN. — Paramount Lodging Advisors has brokered the sale of Drury Inn & Suites, a 118-room hotel located in Memphis. A regional investor purchased the hotel and has rebranded it as a Quality Inn & Suites. Adam Montufar and Brent Clemens of Paramount represented the seller, DSW Inns LLC, in the transaction.
BEMIDJI, MINN. — DoubleTree by Hilton has opened a new 92-room hotel along the waterfront of Lake Bemidji following a 15-month, $14 million investment. The newly constructed DoubleTree by Hilton Bemidji hotel adjoins the existing Hampton Inn & Suites Bemidji, a sister brand within the Hilton Worldwide portfolio. SCGM LLC owns the hotel, which is managed by Rich Siegert & Associates. The hotel features more than 5,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, 700 feet of private beach access, and more than half of the rooms include private balconies that overlook Lake Bemidji.
PHILADELPHIA — Radisson Blu has completed the $20 million renovation and conversion of the Radisson Blu Warwick Hotel in Philadelphia. The hotel marks the third Radisson Blu hotel in the United States, joining Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel in Chicago and the Radisson Blu Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn. The renovation of the 301-room historic hotel, situated in the Rittenhouse Square district, includes a redesign of all guestrooms and corridors, a new business class floor with a private lounge, as well as a new lobby. Jim Hamilton of interior design and graphics firm Graven Images designed the hotel. Originally opened in 1926, the hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
BRUNSWICK, MAINE — New England Hotel Realty (NEHR) has arranged the sale of the 30-room Captain Daniel Stone Inn in Brunswick. The buyer, a global investment company, plans to renovate the property and develop additional guest rooms and an 1,800-square-foot health spa. The new owner, who owns the Troca Hotels collection, will also rebrand the Captain Daniel Stone Inn as part of his luxury collection after renovations are completed. NEHR represented the seller, a local lender, in the transaction.
SAN DIEGO — The 176-room Courtyard San Diego Old Town and the 123-room Fairfield Inn & Suites San Diego Old Town have received $50 million in debt financing. They are located at 2435 Jefferson Street and 3900 Old Town Ave., respectively. Both hotels are Marriott brands and are owned by a joint venture between Rockpoint Group, LLC and Clearview Hotel Capital, LLC. The floating-rate loan carries a three-year initial term and two optional 12-month extensions. It was secured by Mathew Comfort, Reid McGlamery and Mike Huth of Jones Lang LaSalle. The loan was provided by a domestic bank.
CLEVELAND — Greenwood Hospitality Group has partnered with Cleveland-based GEIS Hospitality Group to manage the 156-room Metropolitan Hotel in Cleveland. The hotel will anchor The 9, a mixed-use project under development by the GEIS Cos. Scheduled to open in August 2014, the Metropolitan will occupy the former AmeriTrust tower and historic Cleveland Trust Rotunda. The Metropolitan will include 156 rooms, with some as large as 650 square feet. It will feature a lobby bar, fitness center and spa, as well as the only rooftop bar and sundeck in the city, according to Greenwood. The hotel will be part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection, a group of more than 50 independent hotels.