New York City Leads U.S. With 2022 New Openings

The DJIA fell 129 points while Nasdaq was down 114, the S&P 500 fell 29 points and the 10 year treasury yield was up .07 to 4.08%. Despite the down markets, lodging stocks were modestly higher even though the two biggest movers were to the downside. SLNA was down another -15%, ABNB fell -7% but VCSA was up 6% and MCG and AHT both rose 5% on the day.

According to the third quarter United States Construction Pipeline Trend Report from Lodging Econometrics, within the first three quarters of 2022, the markets with the greatest number of new openings are New York City, Austin, Nashville, Atlanta and Detroit.

Pipeline

Under Construction

Starting in Next 12 Months

Early Planning Stage

BWH Hotel Group announced the launch of a new extended stay brand. The parent company of Best Western Hotels & Resorts, SureStay Hotel Group and WorldHotels Collection unveiled Home by BWH, a midscale extended-stay brand. BWH has other extended stay brands, Executive Residency by Best Western which has eight hotels, four of them in the US, two in Canada and a hotel each in Kenya and Netherlands. SureStay Studio by Best Western has seven locations.

Innisfree Hotels’ plans to build a 12-story hotel next to Crabs on the Beach are still in full-motion, but they will not include a rooftop helipad. The Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) board voted unanimously against the helipad at their latest meeting. The conceptual plan presented to the SRIA earlier this year included renovations to the Hampton Inn on Pensacola Beach and a brand-new tower next door that would include 89 hotel rooms, 16 luxury condos, a pool deck and bar, a 250-space parking garage and the controversial rooftop helipad. The project was estimated to cost about $60 million and open in spring 2024. Although the board voted against the helipad, they did approve a combined lease agreement for properties on 2 Via de Luna Drive, including Club Coco, UFO’s Mini Golf and the Hampton Inn. The Hampton Inn site is 4.67 acres and the mini golf site that will become the second tower is 1.37 acres. The combined leases, owned by H&S Development, would allow for more occupancy in the new hotel because of the increased property size. 

Minneapolis’ historic Rand Tower Hotel announced its October 28 grand opening following the completion of three brand new food and beverage venues along with curated in-room dining, all concepted by chef Daniel del Prado of DDP Restaurant Group. Rand Tower Hotel, a Marriott Tribute Portfolio Hotel is managed by HHM and offers 270 guestrooms and suites and elegant meeting spaces. 

The City Council approved plans that could bring more than 2,000 apartments and a hotel within walking distance of the future Chicago casino site from Bally’s Corporation. While not yet designed, Shapack Partners hopes to build four residential towers within two planned development areas in River West. The development would also convert a former Salvation Army building into a 141-room boutique hotel. In addition to the apartments, the proposed towers near the casino site in River West could also include a range of restaurants, retail and office space. 

A San Jose hotel development site faces foreclosure after loan default. The future is now murky for the hotel that would have brought hundreds of rooms to San Jose. As currently approved, the proposed hotel could bring 200 rooms to north San Jose’s Alviso district. The hotel also was expected to contain 15,400 square feet of retail. A lender has filed a notice of default against a loan whose collateral is the land where the hotel was slated to be built, according to documents filed with the Sana Clara County Recorder’s Office. The hotel was proposed as a Shilla Stay, one of the brands of Shilla Hotels & Resorts, an affiliate of Samsung Group. A South Korea-based company, operating as Mirae San Jose, bought the land in 2019, paying $22.5 million. Pine Tree Specialized Private Investment Trust and KEB Hana Bank provided the loan of $26.4 million to Mirae San Jose at the time of the land purchase. Now, the lending consortium claims that the Mirae real estate firm owes $34.4 million in the wake of the loan delinquency. Pine Tree Specialized and KEB Hana Bank are threatening to seize ownership of the land through a foreclosure process. 

The SureStay Plus Hotel by Best Western Elizabeth City held a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the rebranding and renovations of the hotel which is located in Elizabeth City, NC.

HVS Brokerage & Advisory announced the sale of the 77-key La Quinta Inn & Suites by Wyndham Houston Energy Corridor, in Houston, TX. The limited-service property was purchased by Venture One Hospitality LLC from Shadowbriar Hospitality LLC. The buyer has secured a long-term franchise license agreement with Wyndham and plans to complete the brand-mandated change-of-ownership PIP. 

Central America’s newest ultra-luxury boutique resort and branded residences has secured $130 million in financing that will fund the property’s ongoing construction, with completion and opening expected in late 2024. Nekajui, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve is situated on Peninsula Papagayo, a private club and resort community located on the north Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The resort will comprise 107 guest rooms and suites, as well as 36 branded estate homes and villas. Financing for the construction of Nekajui has been provided by a group led by Banco BCT and Monroe Capital. Gencom and Mohari Hospitality, which are developing Nekajui through a joint venture partnership, broke ground in May 2022 and have since been preparing the site for vertical construction, which begins this month. Amenities at Nekajui include a private beach club, on-site spa, three Ritz-Carlton Reserve dining concepts and a suspension bridge. Lotus Capital partners acted as financing advisor to Gencom and Mohari on this transaction.

Personnel Moves

Loews Corporation announced that CEO Jonathan Tisch will assume the role of Executive Chairman and Alex Tisch will become President and Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2023. Jon Tisch will remain Co-Chairman of the Board of Loews Corporation, serving along with Andrew Tisch. As President & CEO, Alex will oversee the day-to-day operations of the company, as well as the development and execution of the organization’s strategy and management of capital and resource allocation.

McKibbon Hospitality announced the retirement of its three top executives, John McKibbon, Vann Herring and David Hughs. Randy Hassen succeeds Vann Herring and has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer, guiding the management company’s long-range planning and strategic direction. Bruce Baerwalde has been promoted to President, responsible for driving peak performance in McKibbon’s portfolio of hotels and restaurants. Chief Financial Officer Joe Taggart succeeds David Hughs and is now serving as the President of McKibbon Hotel Group, while continuing to oversee the financial well-being of all McKibbon entities, including McKibbon Hospitality, McKibbon Places, McKibbon Family Investment Fund, and McKibbon Equities. Carrying on the family legacy, J.B. McKibbon IV has been named President of McKibbon Equities, a newly developed arm of the company responsible for new development and asset management of McKibbon-owned properties as well as the McKibbon Family Investment Fund.

Sage Hospitality Group announced a series of organizational changes including the promotion of Daniel del Olmo to president, hotels and restaurants for Sage Hospitality Group; the appointment of Mark Augarten as chief operating officer for Sage Restaurant Concepts; and the streamlining of the company’s commercial teams to create a center of excellence that will support all hotels, restaurants, and entertainment venues. del Olmo, who previously held the role of president and chief operating officer for Sage Hotel Management, has been promoted to this newly created position that encompasses complete oversight of all aspects of both Sage Hotel Management and Sage Restaurant Concepts. In this role, del Olmo will oversee a diverse portfolio of more than 110 independent, luxury, lifestyle, soft-branded and upscale hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues. Augarten will join the organization on November 14 from his most recent role as vice president of operations at King’s Signature Group. Under the direction of del Olmo, Augarten will direct operations for the company’s portfolio of more than 50 restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and entertainment venues across the nation. Sage has also streamlined its commercial efforts under one leader to create a center of excellence by maximizing collaboration across similar departments and job functions. To achieve this, Patrick Pahlke has assumed the role of executive vice president and chief commercial officer for Sage Hospitality Group, where he will direct all commercial efforts for Sage Hotel Management and Sage Restaurant Concepts. Additionally, Bryan Terzi has been promoted to the role of group vice president, marketing strategy for Sage Hospitality Group, where he will continue to work with Pahlke and lead all aspects of marketing strategy for the hotel portfolio while assuming responsibility for all Sage Restaurant Concepts marketing efforts. Pahlke joined Sage from PROPER Hospitality. Terzi came to Sage from the Relevant Group.

Europe Highlights

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts plans to open 25 new hotels across the world in the next eight years, even as the risk of a global recession that is likely to crimp travel spending is increasing, according to chief executive Sonia Cheng Chi-man. The brand is part of Rosewood Hotel Group, which currently has about 10,000 rooms in 43 hotels. 

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts also announced it has been appointed by Gruppo Statuto to manage Rosewood Milan, which will open in 2025 in the heart of the city, marking the brand’s fourth hotel in Italy. Rosewood Milan will offer 70 rooms, including approximately 20 suites, and a bar and restaurant with a courtyard and garden. The property will also house the Asaya wellness facility with three treatment rooms, an indoor pool and fitness center.