Latest news: $41M loan for Wisconsin resort; BWH adds in KSA; Santa Barbara growth

$41M loan in Wisconsin. Chester, Virginia-based Uphoff Ventures LLC has secured a $41.13 million loan to develop the 208-key Dellshire Resort in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. The four-story Medieval-themed hotel represents the initial phase of a more than 40-acre master-planned resort and attraction development. The hotel will also feature a 222-seat restaurant, six pools, a swim-up pool bar and a 60-foot, fire-breathing dragon sculpture will mark the hotel’s entrance. Dallas-based HALL Structured Finance closed the first loan and Darien, Connecticut-based Nuveen Green Capital provided an additional $27.77 million in C-pace financing. JLL brokered the deal. The resort is scheduled to open in the second quarter of 2026.

BWH adds in KSA. BWH Hotels is moving closer to its goal of reaching 70 properties in the Middle East by 2027 by announcing eight new signings. The hotels, all based in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, include: WorldHotels King Road, Jeddah; Executive Residency by Best Western, The Breeze Hotel, Al Khobar; Best Western Premier, Riyadh; Best Western Premier Madinah Hotel, Madinah; Best Western Centria Hotel, Riyadh; SureStay Plus by Best Western Madinah Hotel, Madinah; SureStay Studio by Best Western Acacia Hotel, Jeddah and the SureStay Studio by Best Western Sweet Home Hotel, Jeddah. BWH currently has 19 hotels in the Middle East with 22 in the pipeline. 

Expansion in Santa Barbara. The Fess Parker family is renovating and adding 73 hotel rooms to the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort in California. The Santa Barbara Planning Commission approved the project at Thursday’s meeting. The hotel was originally built in 1986 and will have 433 rooms after the renovation.

New York hotel rebrand. Buffalo, New York-based Ellicott Development is rebranding The Wingate by Wyndham in Ellicottville in New York as Huntley House as part of a $2 million makeover, according to Buffalo Business First. The renovations are scheduled to begin this summer with the rebranded hotel scheduled to open this fall. 

New hotel in Memphis. Rosemont, Illinois-based Capstone Development and Ocala, Florida-based M&M Enterprises are developing a five-story, 152-key Hampton Inn by Hilton hotel in the Liberty Park area of Memphis, Tennessee. The development will also include 20,000 sq. ft. of retail and 212 apartments. Construction is scheduled to begin in late 2025 and the hotel is expected to open by early 2027.

New hotel in Brussels. Brussels-based Eaglestone is partnering with Munich, Germany-based Motel One to develop a new 250-key hotel in the Rue Royale area of Brussels, Belgium. The Cloud One hotel will be an adaptive reuse of an office building that Eaglestone purchased in 2022.

LHG expands into the UK. Madrid-based Líbere Hospitality Group (LHG), an operator of alternative short- and medium-term accommodation, has entered the U.K. market through its first operations agreement in London, according to Hotel Owner. The new 44-unit property is scheduled to begin operations this month. The launch is part of LHG’s expansion strategy, which has driven its growth across Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece. The company currently has a portfolio of more than 1,900 units across over 50 properties in five countries and has 16 additional openings scheduled for the rest of this year.

Radisson opens two Net Zero hotels. Radisson Hotel Group has taken a significant step towards its commitment to becoming Net Zero by 2050, with the launch of its first two verified Net Zero hotels. The Radisson Hotel Manchester City Centre and the Radisson RED Oslo City Centre have successfully met the 2040 requirements of the Net Zero methodology for hotels, focusing on eliminating carbon emissions from energy, operations and supply chains.