Top Stories

Starwood Hotels Considers Terminating Merger with Marriott in Favor of $13.2B Proposal from Anbang

by Christina Cannon March 18, 2016

STAMFORD, CONN. — Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. is considering terminating its planned acquisition by Marriott in light of a new offer from a Chinese-led joint venture. Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group is leading the new offer of $13.2 billion, which includes investment from J.C. Flowers & Co. and Primavera Capital Limited. The joint venture is collectively known as Anbang Consortium. Starwood, which is based in Stamford, said that the Anbang bid is a superior proposal to the price tag that Marriott agreed to pay in November. Marriott’s cash-and-stock proposal was valued at $68.06 per share, or $13.06 billion as of Thursday’s closing price, according to The Wall Street Journal. Anbang Consortium would pay $78 per share, an increase from the $76 per share proposal it made on March 10. Click here to read the details on the initial Marriott offer. Marriott has until March 28 to make a counter offer to Starwood, and has stated that it “continues to believe that a combination of Marriott and Starwood is the best course for both companies and offers the best value to Starwood shareholders.” Under the terms of the original merger agreement, Starwood, which owns the Westin, St. Regis, Sheraton and W hotel …

March 18, 2016

California Office Top Stories Western

Google to Buy Eight Silicon Valley Office Buildings from NetApp for $250M

by John Nelson March 17, 2016

SUNNYVALE, CALIF. — Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) has entered into a purchase agreement to buy eight office buildings in Silicon Valley from NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP) for $250 million, according to a document filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 9. The tech companies amended the filing on March 11. NetApp plans to lease back an unspecified portion of the office footprint from Google, according to the filing. The office properties, located in Sunnyvale in Santa Clara County, include the following: • 1299 Orleans Drive (46,170 square feet) • 1277 Orleans Drive (42,624 square feet) • 1260 Crossman Ave. (95,464 square feet) • 1240 Crossman Ave. (125,648 square feet) • 549 Baltic Way (110,160 square feet) • 641 Baltic Way (88,320 square feet) • 611 Baltic Way (43,372 square feet) • 633 Caribbean Drive (43,372 square feet) According to the filing, the sale is expected to close prior to April 12, 2016, and in no circumstance later than April 22. NetApp, a data storage management provider and servicer, recently announced it would cut roughly 12 percent of its workforce, according to the Silicon Valley Business Journal. NetApp currently has more than 12,000 employees in more than 150 offices worldwide. …

March 17, 2016

State of the Industry Hunter Hotel Conference

Features Georgia Hospitality Southeast Top Stories

Hotel Experts Preach Opportunistic Mindset at Hunter Hotel Conference

by John Nelson March 17, 2016

ATLANTA — Too often hoteliers are so immersed in executing their business plans they miss golden opportunities that suddenly arise, according to hotel experts speaking at the 28th annual Hunter Hotel Conference. During the “State of the Industry” panel, executives from Blackstone, Starwood Capital Group, Rockbridge, MCR Development LLC and Apple Hospitality REIT took the stage to discuss opportunities they see in the marketplace. Tyler Morse, CEO and managing partner of MCR Development, said the lodging industry in the United States will present ample opportunities in the next couple years. “The hotel space in particular in the U.S. economy is going to be great in 2016 and 2017. The rest of the world is kind of a disaster,” said Morse. “Funds are coming to the U.S. as a flight to quality. The U.S. is where the growth is, and the hotel business is a beneficiary of that.” In a real-world example of being opportunistic, Brian Kim, managing director of real estate at Blackstone, spoke about how the firm’s recent $6.5 billion sale of Strategic Hotels & Resorts to Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group Inc. wasn’t the original strategy for Blackstone. Having just closed on the Strategic purchase in December 2015, Blackstone’s …

March 17, 2016

California Hospitality Top Stories Western

Luxury Hotel in San Diego to Open $107M Expansion in June

by Haisten Willis March 16, 2016

SAN DIEGO — Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina, owned by Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST), is in the final stages of a $107 million expansion. Located on downtown San Diego’s waterfront, the expansion of the luxury hotel and convention center will be complete in June. It will include two new ballrooms along with Marina Terrace, an outdoor area on the bay and the Marine Walk public walkway. The project also includes a 16-screen video wall system and a Swarovski crystal ceiling installation. A multi-million dollar makeover of the resort’s guest rooms and public areas was completed in 2011. The new construction will increase the center’s meeting, indoor and outdoor event space to 280,000 square feet. The largest portion of the expansion was adding two 36,000-square-foot ballrooms, known as Marriott Grand Ballroom and Pacific Ballroom. Each is capable of accommodating up to 3,700 guests, and both will have foyers reaching up to 25,000 square feet, offering options to extend the space. The new building features a blue glass design, which makes use of natural light. tvsdesign was the project’s architect. “We drew inspiration from the host community with its iconic coastline, which we incorporated into the design, capturing a sense of …

March 16, 2016

Hospitality Kansas Midwest Multifamily Top Stories

WaterWalk Hotel Apartments Signs $150M Deal to Develop Eight Properties in Texas, Colorado

by Katie Sloan March 15, 2016

WICHITA, KAN. — WaterWalk Hotel Apartments has inked a deal with Rockford Development Group to develop eight WaterWalk franchises in San Antonio, Dallas, Austin and Denver. Paul Roberts and hotel industry veteran Rob Mossburg are leading Rockford’s end of the venture. Under the terms of the deal, Rockford will become a WaterWalk franchisee. The cost of building the eight locations was estimated at $150 million. Rockford’s construction arm will also become the preferred builder for WaterWalk-owned locations. Wichita-based WaterWalk’s hybrid hotel and apartment model is a play on the extended-stay model, combining traditional hotel services within a gated, apartment-like community. The complex offers one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans with the option of being furnished or unfurnished upon rental. Amenities at WaterWalk include all-inclusive pricing, full-sized appliances in a modern kitchen, high-speed Internet, satellite television with premium channels and DVR, housekeeping, fitness club membership, a communal bicycle rental program, local transportation, and free breakfast. Entrepreneur Jack DeBoer, founder of Residence Inn, Summerfield Suites, Candlewood Suites and Value Place, created the new concept, which opened its first site in Wichita in 2014. WaterWalk locations target corporate housing needs, holiday travelers requiring an extended stay and those moving to a new city …

March 15, 2016

Features Healthcare Top Stories

Duke Realty Identifies Five Healthcare Real Estate Trends to Watch in 2016

by John Nelson March 15, 2016

INDIANAPOLIS — What does the future hold for the healthcare real estate industry in 2016? In a new white paper penned by Keith Konkoli, executive vice president of healthcare at Duke Realty (NYSE: DRE), the author predicts the industry will experience an increase in the development of new facilities, as well as an uptick in consolidation in 2016. Here’s a summary of five key trends and issues the firm expects this year and beyond: 1. Healthcare real estate construction will continue to increase — Healthcare development has been strong in recent years, and there should be no letup in activity in 2016. A recent study by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) says it expects “healthy growth” for non-residential construction this year. That includes the healthcare sector, which AIA predicts will experience a 5.8 percent increase in construction in 2016. The industry is experiencing an uptick in the development of a wide variety of healthcare properties, including rehabilitation hospitals, medical office buildings and off-campus emergency rooms/community micro-hospitals. Even so, the industry hasn’t reached a point of saturation and providers aren’t yet overbuilding. 2. Healthcare providers will need to deal with the challenges of ‘site neutrality’ — An important but perhaps overlooked …

March 15, 2016

Hospitality Top Stories

China’s Anbang Insurance Group Buys Strategic Hotels & Resorts for $6.5B

by Nellie Day March 14, 2016

CHICAGO — Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group Co. has agreed to purchase Strategic Hotels & Resorts, which owns 16 hotels throughout the U.S. Several news outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, report the purchase price as $6.5 billion, citing anonymous sources involved in the not-yet-announced deal. Anbang is purchasing the portfolio from Blackstone Group, which acquired Strategic Hotels about three months ago. The Chinese insurer is paying about $450 million more than Blackstone paid for the assets. Properties under the Chicago-based Strategic Hotels & Resorts flag include the JW Marriott Essex House in New York City; the Montage in Laguna Beach, Calif ; the Hotel del Coronado in San Diego; Ritz Carlton properties in Moon Bay and Laguna Niguel, Calif.; InterContinental hotels in Chicago and Miami; and Four Seasons hotels in Washington, Austin, Texas, and Silicon Valley, Calif. Anbang purchased the famed Waldorf-Astoria in New York from Hilton Worldwide Holdings for nearly $2 billion in late 2014. The acquisition was one of the highest price-per-room hotel transactions ever, according to Fortune magazine. Anbang also submitted a $12.8 billion bid to takeover Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, which could disrupt a pending deal with Marriott International. The consortium offered to pay an …

March 14, 2016

Multifamily Top Stories Washington Western

Kennedy Wilson Real Estate Fund V Acquires Two Apartment Communities in Metro Seattle for $140.8M

by Christina Cannon March 11, 2016

MUKILTEO AND LYNNWOOD, WASH. — Kennedy Wilson Real Estate Fund V (Fund V) has acquired two multifamily properties in the metro Seattle area for a total of $140.8 million. Fund V invested $50 million in equity and secured the remainder of the capital through Freddie Mac. Kennedy Wilson (NYSE: KW), a global real estate investment company, is a 12 percent investor in Fund V. In the first transaction, Fund V acquired Alara Harbour Point for $46.5 million from SVF Harbour Pointe Mukilteo LLC. The 230-unit multifamily property is located at 4500 Harbour Pointe Blvd. in Mukilteo, a northern suburb of Seattle. The property features amenities such as a fitness center, picnic areas, business center, swimming pool and clubhouse. Unit amenities at Alara Harbour Point include stainless steel appliances, walk-in closets, high-speed Internet access and balconies or patios. The complex was built in 1998 and is situated on 12 acres within a master-planned community. All buildings within the complex are three stories. In the second transaction, Fund V purchased Tivalli, a 383-unit property, for $94.3 million from GRE Ash way LLC. Amenities at the complex include a 7,000-square-foot lodge, swimming pool, indoor basketball court, yoga studio, outdoor amphitheater, outdoor lounge with fireplace and …

March 11, 2016

Retail Texas Top Stories

Tailored Brands to Close 250 Men’s Wearhouse, Jos. A. Bank Stores in FY 2016

by John Nelson March 10, 2016

HOUSTON — Tailored Brands Inc. (NYSE: TLRD), the recently formed parent company of the Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank menswear brands, plans to close approximately 250 of its stores in fiscal year 2016, according to the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report released March 9. The store closures will include 80 to 90 Jos. A. Bank stores, all 58 of its outlet locations and 100 to 110 of its MW Tux stores. Houston-based Tailored Brands ended fiscal year 2015 on Jan. 31, 2016, with a $1 billion net loss. According to the earnings report, the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) operating loss includes a $1.15 billion “goodwill and intangible asset impairment charge,” which was related to Jos. A. Bank’s poor sales performance, as well as a store reorganization program that Tailored Brands initiated in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015. Jos. A. Bank’s comparable sales in the fourth quarter decreased 31.9 percent from fourth-quarter 2014 due to a decline in average transactions per store. Men’s Wearhouse’s fourth-quarter comparable sales increased 4.3 percent in that same time period. “While our fourth-quarter and full-year results were consistent with our revised guidance, we remain very disappointed by the weak Jos. A. Bank results,” says …

March 10, 2016

InterFace Seniors Housing West Conference, Los Angeles

Conference Coverage Features Top Stories

InterFace Panelists: Seniors Housing Industry Faces Stiff Competition from Each Other, Multifamily Developers

by Jeff Shaw March 10, 2016

LOS ANGELES — Investors of all types are clamoring to cash in on the Baby Boom generation, as this aging population readies to kick off a 20-year need for care and seniors services. That’s according to panelists at InterFace Conference Group’s Seniors Housing West conference, held March 3 at the Omni Los Angeles Hotel. Those looking for a long-term investment are betting heavily on the Boomer population, which is 76.5 million strong, with the oldest being 69 and the youngest turning 50 this year. “The first Boomers are only turning 70 this year,” said keynote speaker Lynne Katzmann, president and founder of Juniper Communities. “They have a decade to go before they need services, but they are today’s primary buyer.” Much of this demographic will have a strong understanding of seniors housing options by the time they need the services themselves, Katzmann asserted, because they will have been down that road before with their aging parents. With this in mind, Katzmann believes it’s incumbent upon the current developers and operators to not just offer the best in senior care, but to invest in their facilities and in client (aging parents and their children) education as well. “We must take action …

March 10, 2016

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