Breaking
news about development, M&A and management and more.
JET acquires, launching boutique brand. Seattle-based
JET Hospitality has acquired two hotels in Wyoming: The Historic Virginian
Hotel in Medicine Bow and the Park Motel in Powell. The Park Motel and a second
lodging property included in the Virginian sale are currently under renovation.
This summer, they will be reopened as the first two locations under the
company’s new boutique brand, Jet Motor. Jet is also sponsoring Jet Growth
Fund LLC, a $5 million syndicated real estate fund that will invest in new
acquisitions and support infill development at existing locations in the Rocky
Mountain Northwest. The fund will be the catalyst for the company’s expansion
and its new Jet Motor Inn brand.
Caribbean legend Bell dies. John Bell, the first executive
director of Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA), has passed away at 86.
Bell was the guiding force of CHTA and was lauded for recognizing the need for
investors and financial institutions to be engaged in the Caribbean hotel
sector. He launched the area’s first investment conference in 1997, which he eventually
hired The BHN Group to run and become the Caribbean Hotel & Resort
Investment Summit (CHRIS), which is being held this week in Miami. Bell
received the CHRIS Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.
Baron acquires in Birmingham. Birmingham, Alabama-based Baron Hospitality
has acquired the 129-key Hampton Inn/Birmingham Mountain Brook for an
undisclosed price from an institutional seller. Hunter Hotel Advisors advised
on the transaction.
IHG adds Kimpton in NYC. IHG
Hotels & Resorts is expanding into New York City with the opening this fall of the
362-key Kimpton Hotel Theta within the city’s historic Theater District, which is an adaptive reuse project. Kimpton plans to open over 25 hotels
in the next three to five years.
MHL Hotel Collections adds in the
UK. Ireland-based MHL
Hotel Collection has acquired the former Park Inn by Radisson Hotel in Belfast
from May Street Capital for an undisclosed price. This purchase is Collection’s
first acquisition outside of Ireland and will be the 14th in its portfolio. The
new owners are planning a major renovation of over €8 million and the hotel
will reopen in May 2025.
Major events drive Adelaide's performance. Several large-scale events have boosted hotel
performance in Adelaide, Australia, according to CoStar data.
During the Santos Tour Down Under on January 12-21, occupancy
reached 78.1%, while RevPAR increased 11.4% year-over-year to AUD179.18. The
three-week period of the Adelaide Festival March 1-17, alongside Adelaide
Fringe (February 16-March 17), drove occupancy to 82.5% (up 6%) and
RevPAR up 6.6% to to AUD191.25. The AFL Gather Round (April 4-7) brought slightly
lower occupancy YOY (down 1.2%), but ADR jumped 15% to AUD372.77.