Hotel News Now’s Independent Insights newsletter each month features a news roundup from the independent hotel sector. Subscribe to the free monthly newsletter here.
Pebblebrook sells Onyx Hotel in Q1
During Pebblebrook Hotel Trust’s recent first-quarter earnings call, officials announced it executed a contract in April to sell the 112-room Onyx Hotel, located in Boston, for $58.3 million. The real estate investment trust is hoping to complete the sale in the second quarter of this year.
Chairman, President and CEO Jon Bortz said if the sale is complete by then, the company would have sold $1.6 billion of gross sale proceeds since it began its strategic disposition plan in November 2018.
Magnificent Mile hotel gets new name after sale
What was formerly known as the Dana Hotel & Spa in River North is now named the Eurostars Magnificent Mile. The 216-room Chicago hotel was acquired in late April for $72.5 million through a venture by Ponte Gadea, a real estate investment business of Amancio Ortega, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.
The hotel will operate under Spanish chain Eurostars Hotel.
AJ Capital Partners buys Hilton Garden Inn in Tennessee
Chicago-based AJ Capital Partners announced it bought the Hilton Garden Inn in Knoxville, Tennessee, near the University of Tennessee. The 112-room hotel will being renovations in December 2019 to convert to the Graduate Knoxville, as part of the Graduate Hotels Collection.
Prior to and during renovation, which is expected to be complete in Spring 2020, the property will operate independently as The Volunteer Hotel.
Openings, management, people on the move
- Management and ownership group Noble House Hotels & Resorts announced it will manage the 121-key L’Auberge Del Mar in Del Mar, California. The boutique hotel is owned by Pebblebrook Hotel Trust.
- Following a full redesign, Lark Hotels has reopened The Cliffside Inn, a historic property in Newport, Rhode Island. The redesign was led by Boston-based Rachel Reider Interiors.
- The Copley Square Hotel in Boston unveiled its new dedicated meeting space, called Art Square and 1891 Boardroom. The space is designed to support the area’s innovative community.
- Gurney’s Star Island Resort & Marina opened in the Hamptons.
- Paséa Hotel & Spa in Huntington Beach, California, named Ed Christensen as its director of food and beverage.
- Hotel Erwin in Venice, California, has appointed Paola Moreno as director of food and beverage.
- The Garden Court Hotel in Palo Alto, California, has named Connie Villeta as the new director of sales and marketing.
- Laura Dorner has been named the new director of sales and marketing for the Plantation on Crystal River in Florida.
- Through a joint venture, Lifsey Real Estate & Holdings and Pinnacle Hotel Management announced the opening of the new-build Marriott Autograph Collection Hotel called Current. The hotel is located in Tampa, Florida.
Compiled by Dana Miller.