Hall Structured Finance Provides $19.2M Loan for Hotel Redevelopment in Fort Lauderdale

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. —  Hall Structured Finance (HSF) has provided a $19.2 million construction loan for the redevelopment of the Gale Hotel, a 96-room boutique hotel in Fort Lauderdale. Howard Taft and Charles Penan of Aztec Group arranged the loan on behalf of the borrower and developer, a joint venture between Newgard Development Group and Merrimac Ventures. The Gale Hotel site was first constructed in 1948 as the Escape Hotel, and operated as a hotel until the 1980s. The property was then transitioned into Tiffany House, an assisted living facility, until it was closed in 2005. The redeveloped Gale Hotel is expected to open in the first quarter of 2019. Menin Hospitality will manage the new hotel. The site, located one block west of A1A and Fort Lauderdale Beach, sits adjacent to Gale Residences, a 129-unit condominium tower that Newgard and Merrimac Ventures are also co-developing. HSF provided a $35.6 million construction loan for the tower in 2016.