Hilton's Names its New Extended Stay Brand

The DJIA fell 158 points while Nasdaq was up 14, the S&P 500 fell 7 points and the 10-year treasury yield was up .02 to 4.02%. Lodging stocks were pretty much lower across the board but not with extreme moves.

BMO Capital initiated coverage on Airbnb with a Market Perform rating. They set their target price at $134.

Concord Hospitality received investments into its operating company from Whitman Peterson and The Aztec Group, two of Concord’s long-term real-estate partners. These stakeholders will continue to play integral roles in Concord’s ongoing success, further solidifying its sold foundation in the ever-evolving hospitality industry.

Starwood Real Estate Investment Trust has sold the Residence Inn Tampa Westshore/Airport, near International Plaza, on December 27th. The price recorded in Hillsborough County property records was $34.48 million but that usually does not reflect the entire price. Starwood bought the 160 key hotel in 2019 for $42.65 million. The buyer is an entity linked to Dauntless Capital Partners. The Plasencia Group represented the seller in the sale of the 106-key Residence Inn Tampa Westshore/Airport, located in Tampa, Florida.

Essex Hotel Management said they retained the management contract for the 84 key Fairfield Inn & Suites Geneva Finger Lakes in Geneva, NY following the sale of the property to Frontier Group of Companies.

Shaner Hotel Group, LP announced the opening of the Inn at Bellefield Residence Inn by Marriott International, a 136-suite hotel. It is located in the heart of New York’s Hudson Valley at Bellefield at Historic Hyde Park, a $1 billion hospitality, agritourism and residential attraction being developed. The $55 billion hotel features conference spaces, a farm to table bar/lounge, a market, and an upscale fitness center. Bellefield at Historic Hyde Park will feature restaurants, breweries, a performing arts center, a second hotel, an amphitheater and 801 residences.

Morguard Corporation announced an unconditional agreement to sell a portfolio of 14 high-quality hotels. The strategic move aligns with Morguard’s commitment to optimize its real estate portfolio, focusing on core real estate investments, including office, industrial, retail and multi-suite residential properties. The hotels, under Marriott, Hilton and IHG brands mostly, total 2,248 rooms and are located mostly in the Greater Toronto area, Ottawa, Halifax and Sudbury. Morguard will retain ownership of two hotels - the dual-brand Hilton Garden Inn and Homewood Suites in Ottawa, Ontario and Inn at the Quay in New Westminster, British Columbia. The transaction is expected to close in this current first quarter.

Hilton announced LivSmart Studios by Hilton is the official name of its new studio apartment-style, extended-stay hotel brand. LivSmart Studios already has more that 350 deals in various stages of negotiation. Construction in Kokomo, IN broke ground less than five months after the brand was announced, making it the first hotel under construction for the brand. It is expected to open by late summer of 2024. HLT said the lower midscale, extended-stay solution will provide a reliable and consistent foundation for the long stay.

The new Embassy Suites by Hilton Asheville Downtown hotel officially soft-opened on December 29th, adding 188 rooms to the downtown Asheville, NC skyline. The hotel provides one and two bedroom suites. The hotel includes a lobby-level chain restaurant and bar with a brick oven pizza restaurant coming to the rooftop of the downtown location, expected to open in the first weekend of March.

Commissioners in Stuart, FL approved Creekside Hotel & Retail’s plans for a 102 room, four story Hilton hotel. The entire complex, including an accompanying retail and restaurant building, will be called the Creekside Hotel & Retail. It will sit on 1.62 acres of land.

The lead developer of the Hard Rock Hotel which collapsed in New Orleans while under construction has begun development of a new project in a former downtown office building. Mohan Kailas and his partners are planning to turn a 31 story skyscraper, two blocks from where the disaster took place, into a mixed-use complex with two hotels, including a 250 room Fairmont Hotel with a rooftop pool. The project will cost more than $90 million and will also include an extended stay Element Hotel and six floors of office space.

Speaking of a disaster, a natural gas leak is apparently the cause of the explosion at the Sandman Hotel in downtown Fort Worth, TX last night. The blast resulted in at least 21 individuals sustaining injuries, with one in critical condition and four in serious condition. The explosion occurred at the sushi restaurant that was undergoing construction within the hotel premises. The Sandman Hotel, at the time of the incident, had 26 occupied rooms.

IHG Hotels & Resorts announced the opening of a newly converted and rebranded voco hotel in Saltillo, Mexico. The voco Saltillo Suites is located in Saltillo’s automotive and manufacturing district, a short drive to Plan de Guadalupe International Airport. The hotel features two restaurants, 731 square feet of meeting space, indoor pool and fitness center. The hotel operates under the ownership of SERVICIOS TURISTICOS DE SALTILLO SA and is managed by American Hotels Group.

The SureStay by Best Western San Francisco Marina District has opened in San Francisco, California. The hotel features 37 guestrooms and an open-air courtyard.

Chautaugua Institution in Buffalo, NY is planning $20 million in renovations to make its Athenaeum Hotel a year-round destination as part of a major capital campaign. Plans for the 142-year-old hotel include weatherization updates and improvements to common areas and second-floor guest rooms that will improve long-term maintenance, creating revenue opportunities beyond the existing season, which generally begins in late spring and runs through early fall.

JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality group arranged the sale of the 107-room Home2 Suites by Hilton Avalon, located in Alpharetta, Georgia. JLL worked on behalf of the seller, Ram Hotels.

Noble Investment Group announced it held the final closing for Noble Hospitality Fund V, LP. This is the fifth of Noble’s flagship series of real estate funds focused on value-added investments in select-service and extended stay hotels across the US. Noble Fund V was oversubscribed with $1 billion of equity commitments from a global institutional base, including public state pension plans, corporate pensions, endowments, foundations, insurance companies and wealth management firms. 90% of Noble’s existing limited partners repeated their commitments to Noble Fund V, together with commitments from several new institutional investors. Noble said the magnitude of loan maturities combined with record amounts of past-due renovations have created a generational investment opportunity to acquire income-producing hotels, recapitalize owners, and add value both operationally and physically. Since the second quarter of 2021, Noble has already made $2 billion of new investments, enhancing operational performance, delivering asset appreciation and subsequently averaging a double-digit equity distribution each year.

Personnel Moves

Hunter Hotel Advisors announced the expansion of its national reach through the establishment of a Capital Markets team with Charlie Ryan as the company’s first addition. Ryan will be Senior VP of Capital Markets, responsible for overseeing the firm’s debt and capital market activities on a national scale. Ryan joins Hunter from Sonder where he was Head of Debt & Capital Markets.

RobertDouglas announced they promoted Patrick Tan to the role of Senior Vice President.

Cheval Collection appointed Taras Ettl to its development team. Ettl brings with him extensive experience in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, at a time when Cheval Collection has established its first site in Dubai, with plans for further growth in the area and doubling its efforts in Europe. Ettl’s background includes working for Kingdom Hotel Investments, InterContinental Hotels Group and Deutsche Hospitality.

Europe Highlight

Silicius sold two assets in Madrid and Cadiz for €41.9m. Located on the beachfront of Conil de la Frontera in Cadis, the Fergus Conil Park Hotel is a 4-star hotel leased to the Fergus chain. The hotel comprises several restaurants, gardens, a pool and a mini-club. The other asset sold is a 2,200 square meter office building located in Madrid’s Salamanca district.