In a very wild session with a 1500-point swing, the DJIA ended the day up 827 points while Nasdaq was up 249, the S&P 500 rose 98, the 10-year treasury yield was up .05 to 3.95% and lodging stocks were higher. The star of the day was SVC, up 27% as they declared a $0.20 a share dividend, their first real, not token, dividend since the pandemic. They also commented they had over $750 million of liquidity after the dividend payment. SOND was up 11%, BHR and VCSA were up 8% each and XHR rose 5% on the day.
In an excerpt from CoStar, the transition from the summer to fall travel seasons has been different than in the past years, according to some U.S. hoteliers, who are adjusting strategies for selling hotel rooms to meet the new demand. Spire Hospitality said demand across their hotels dipped in the last two weeks of August and the first week of September. However, in terms of fall leisure transient demand, it has been going absolutely gangbusters, and exceeding 2019. In contrast, corporate leisure demand for hotels is still building but it is nowhere near the lows that segment experienced in the past.
Hotel Equities announced the reopening of the Courtyard by Marriott in Mobile, AL, following a year of renovations from damage caused by Hurricane Ida.
Trez Capital announced the closing of an $18.75 million construction financing loan for Virtua Partners for a new 128-room SpringHill Suites by Marriott in Avondale, AZ, a suburb just west of Phoenix. Quyp Hospitality LLC will develop the hotel and it will be part of a 58-acre mixed-use development. Hotel construction is expected to start in November 2022 and the hotel is slated to open in 2023.
The St. Regis Bal Harbour, in Miami Beach, FL, is celebrating its tenth anniversary by introducing a new spa concept, The St. Regis Spa. The 14,000 square foot spa offers 12 treatment rooms, a whirlpool, a sauna, steam room and a relaxation lounge.
Hilton Tulum Riviera Maya All-Inclusive Resort announced the opening of La Mezcaleria, a signature mezcal bar that is the first of its kind in the brand’s all-inclusive portfolio. The new bar will feature 13 different mezcals, all local to Mexico. La Mezcaleria joins the resort’s 13 concept-driven ding and beverage venues.
RLJ Lodging Trust announced the debut of Zachari Dunes on Mandalay Beach, Curio Collection by Hilton, following a full scale renovation and brand conversion. This is Southern California’s only all-suite oceanfront resort. The multi-million dollar transformation was said to have elevated the 250 all-suite property to an upscale hideaway complete with thoughtful amenities and beach views. The hotel is located an hour north of Los Angeles. The renovations resulted in a spacious and bright lobby overlooking the alfresco plaza with a fireplace, fire pit, pool, hot tub, and ocean beyond. The resort’s suites view options include oceanfront, ocean view, beach view, pool view and garden view with the suites boasting more than 600 square feet of space. New food and beverage concepts, social gathering hubs, wellness offerings and more than 23,000 square feet of upgraded event space are all part of the unveiling.
Concord Hospitality announced the opening of Hotel West & Main, Tapestry Collection by Hilton in Conshohocken, PA. Located in the historic Washington Fire Company station, the hotel features 127 guest rooms, two culinary experiences, and sky bar, fitness center and over 5,000 square feet of flexible event space. This is the final installment of Keystone Development and Investment’s SORA West, transit-oriented mixed-use development. The hotel includes 5,241 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space, two bespoke culinary experiences led by Executive Chef Zack Wannawong and more.
IHG Hotels & Resorts announced the opening of the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Dallas Plano North, located in Plano, Texas. Owned by Plano Lodging LLC and managed by AM Hotel Management, Inc, the 105-room hotel offers an outdoor pool and a fitness center.
A hotel in San Jose, CA, that’s part of a four-hotel purchase package has been bought in a deal whose final price wound up just under $16 million, according to Santa Clara County documents. An affiliate of Magna Hospitality bought the hotel. Magna’s affiliate paid nearly $15.8 million for the hotel building and Magna hospitality also obtained a ground lease for the land beneath the hotel. The new owner intends to convert the hotel, previously a 115-room Wyndham Hotels & Resorts brand property, into a Hampton Inn. To help bankroll its purchase of the four hotels, Magna Hospitality obtained $77.5 million in financing from Western Alliance Bank. In addition to the purchase financing, some of the loan funds might also be used for physical upgrades or other endeavors to help convert the San Jose hotel to a Hampton Inn.
In Santa Monica, CA, The Georgian is set to relaunch after a chic renovation. Purchased in 2020 by BLVD Hospitality in partnership with ES Ventures, the eight-story, 84-room hotel is scheduled to debut its redo in January 2023. In addition to the 84 rooms, the renovation touched upon the lobby and two restaurants and includes the addition of a new gym; The Library; and two meeting and private dining room spaces. The Georgian will be the first hotel where BBLVD will oversee operations.
The developers of a mixed-use project in Portland, ME presented their plans to replace a run-down building with a 12-story luxury hotel with 70-below-ground valet parking spaces. The proposal includes the site of the former Portland Press Herald printing plant to be called Herald Square which comprises three attached buildings, including a 156-guestroom hotel, 297 condominiums, seven retail units, a restaurant, reception space and more than 330 parking spaces. Fathom Companies is the hotel developer.
Omnia Group has spent most of the last decade converting the old brick tenement building at 225 Bowery into a niche hotel on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. But after weathering a series of starts and stops, Omnia has been slapped with a $10.4 million judgment in a dispute with its former management partners, and one of its lenders is moving to foreclose on the property. Omnia partners with Ace Hotel to brand and manage the projects as a 200-key hotel, the first in Ace’s “Sister City” line of accommodations. In return for its services, Ace would receive 3% of the hotel’s annual gross revenue, plus certain performance-based bonuses. The contract was set to run for 10 years, followed by two 5-year extensions that only Ace had the option to back out of. Omnia renovated the aging building into a hotel and took on an $80 million gap mortgage from Bank Hapoalim in March 2019. The Sister City hotel opened but had to shut its door just a year later due to the pandemic and that’s when things went of the rails. The owners soon began missing payments on their gap mortgage. Bank Hapoalim declared the loan in default last October, and in April it filed to foreclose on the hotel and appoint a receiver. In January, Ace filed for arbitration, alleging that Omnia had violated their contract. In September, arbitrators awarded Ace $10.4 million and ordered the hotel owners to stop displaying trademarks associated with the Sister City brand.
Hodges Ward Elliott said they arranged the sale of Hyatt Regency Greenwich, a 373-key, four-story hotel in Old Greenwich, CT. The buyer was an investment fund managed by Trinity Fund Advisors LLC. The Trinity Real Estate Investments LLC affiliate is planning a renovation of the hotel’s guest rooms, lobby and meeting space in addition to enhancing the overall amenities.
RIU Hotels & Resorts announced the opening of Hotel Riu Latino, one of Cancun’s newest adults-only all-inclusive resorts. Located in Condominio Costa Mujeres, Mexico, the resort offers more than 550 rooms, many dining options, five outdoor pools, the Splash Water World water park and the Renova Spa.
The Leading Hotels of the World and Life House announced a joint turnkey solution of independent luxury hotel owners and developers. Powered by the global luxury hospitality brand of Leading Hotels, the solution pairs the Company’s global infrastructure of sales, marketing and distribution with Life House’s best-in-class technology platform that boasts a proprietary Revenue Management and Marketing System and operating platform that automates key back-office functions.
Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. announced the appointment of Diana M. Laing to the company’s Board of Directors, effective October 11, 2022. Ms. Laing has also been appointed to serve on the Audit Committee, effective November 7, 2022. With the addition of Ms. Laing, the Company’s Board will have nine directors, seven of whom are independent; and three women directors, which is more than 30% of the Board. Ms. Laing is a seasoned corporate finance executive that most recently served as interim chief financial officer for Alexander and Baldwin, a real estate investment trust and one of Hawaii’s leading owners and operations of strip retail centers.
Hotel Equities announced the promotion of Corbin Tipton to Regional Director of Business Development – Western Region. Prior to his promotion, Corbin worked on HE’s Business Development Team in the U.S. and Canada assisting with client communications and growth of the Company’s hotel portfolio.
Europe Highlights
Zleep Hotels celebrated a topping-out ceremony for Zleep Hotel Prague. The first hotel in the Czech Republic will feature 166 rooms as well as a lobby, reception, and snack bar. Zleep Hotel Prague is to be completed by 2024 as part of a mixed-use development project consisting of an international school, residential units, offices and a retail area.
