MIAMI — Dubai-based Nakheel Resorts has invested $375 million in exchange for a 50 percent interest in Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel, to form a joint venture with Las Vegas-based Fontainebleau Resorts. The hotel property will undergo a $500 million renovation, which is expected to open the second half of this year. The hotel is situated on 17 oceanfront acres and will feature 1,500 guest rooms and suites, a 40,000-square-foot spa, multiple marquee restaurants, a nightclub and ultra-lounge, a lush poolscape and 200,000 square feet of meeting, convention and ballroom facilities.
Hospitality
ERIE, PA. — Acquest Development, in partnership with the Erie County Convention Center Authority, has completed construction of the Sheraton Erie Bayfront Hotel located on Pesque Isle Bay in Erie. The eight-story hotel features 200 guestrooms, a 65-foot pedestrian skywalk and a 300-space parking garage. The hotel, which is surrounded by water on three sides, will feature amenities such as lobby seating with a fireplace, a bar, a dining room and a spa and exercise room. Acquest will manage the hotel in partnership with White Lodging Services Corp.
KANSAS CITY, MO. — Noble Investment Group has acquired the 295-room Kansas City Marriott Country Club Plaza, located in Kansas City. The 19-story hotel features 16,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 42-seat amphitheater. Additional amenities include two concierge levels, the Main Street Grill restaurant, a lobby lounge, an executive business center, a fitness center and an indoor swimming pool. Noble will operate the hotel under a long-term license agreement with Marriott International. The hotel also will undergo an $8.8 million renovation. The seller, as well as the acquisition price, was undisclosed.
NORFOLK, VA. — Aniesh Corp. has purchased Radisson Hotel Norfolk, a 12-story, 350-room property in downtown Norfolk, from RHN Hotel Associates, for $10 million. Aniesh plans to retain the Radisson flag and implement a capital improvement plan for the 5.5-acre property, which is located at 700 Monticello Ave. Alexander Divaris, Jason Oliver and Michael Divaris of Virginia Beach, Va.-based Divaris Real Estate represented the seller in the transaction.
SKOKIE, ILL. — GMAC Commercial Mortgage Corp. (GMACCM) has provided a financing package totaling approximately $32.6 million for the renovation and conversion of the North Shore Skokie Hotel in Skokie. The hotel, located at 9599 Skokie Blvd., will be renovated and converted into the Doubletree North Shore Hotel and Conference Center — Skokie. The 12-story tower comprises 270 guestrooms and a four-story executive wing containing an additional 97 guestrooms. The hotel also features approximately 22,500 square feet of meeting space, a kosher kitchen, a fitness center, a business center, an indoor/outdoor pool and the 238-seat Daily Grill restaurant. GMACCM's hospitality industry division arranged and underwrote the transaction, which included approximately $28.6 million in floating-rate acquisition financing and $4 million in floating-rate mezzanine financing. Oxford OBG-Waterton Skokie Hotel Mezz LLC and Oxford OBG-Waterton Skokie Hotel Property received the funding.
BRANCHBURG, N.J. — Rockbridge Capital has closed a $17.3 million first mortgage investment for the 139-room Hotel Sierra in Branchburg. LodgeWorks, the owner, plans to upgrade the former Sierra Suites to a Hotel Sierra, an upscale hotel concept. The hotel is located near I-287 and I-78.
RIDGEFIELD PARK, N.J. — Hartz Mountain has begun construction on the 140-room Hilton Garden Inn at Overpeck Centre in Ridgefield Park. The five-story hotel, located at 70 Challenger Rd., will feature a business center, a workout facility, and a restaurant and bar. Construction is set to be complete fall 2008. Overpeck Centre is a mixed-use development set on 60 acres along the waterfront. It contains more than 1 million square feet of office space and a 12-screen theater.
DANBURY, CONN. — Optimum Hotel Brokerage has completed the sale of the Best Western Berkshire Inn in Danbury. The property features a 69-room hotel and two commercial office buildings. Situated along Interstate 84, the hotel was purchased for an undisclosed price by an undisclosed Fairfield County-based owner and operator. Joe McCann of Optimum Hotel Brokerage represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction.
SAN DIEGO — Reno Contracting is constructing a new Marriott Residence Inn, which is located at Sixth Avenue and J Street in the heart of San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. Designed by Awbrey Cook McGill, the 13-story hotel will feature 240 suites, more than 8,000 square feet of ground-level retail, a street-level bar and lounge, meeting rooms, banquet facilities and a rooftop pool and deck overlooking Fifth Avenue. Completion of the project is slated for November 2009.
RICHMOND, VA. — Virginia-based First and Franklin has acquired Linden Row Inn, a historic 70-room property in Richmond, from Silver Linden Properties, for an undisclosed amount. David Mumford, Matt Winston and Justin Pinkard of Mumford Company’s Newport News, Va., office were the sole brokers in the transaction.