Colorado Real Estate Journal - June 3, 2015
Two well-known downtown Denver hotels – the Curtis and the Crowne Plaza Denver Downtown – sold within a week in deals valued at $158.26 million. The Curtis, a boutique, pop-culture themed hotel across from the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, traded for $86.01 million, or $255,981 per key, according to public records. The Crowne Plaza Denver Downtown, five blocks away at 1450 Glenarm Place, sold for $72.25 million; that’s $198,489 per key for a hotel that will be fully renovated over the next 18 months. “It’s been such a strong hotel market that a lot of these significant hotel investors are really becoming aggressive,” said John Winslow of Winslow Property Consultants, who was not involved in the transactions. “I haven’t seen two hotels in downtown Denver sell in a week ever – it’s a real anomaly,” he said. Records show the Curtis, a DoubleTree by Hilton hotel, sold to TCH Property LLC, which is affiliated with AB (formerly AllianceBernstein) and Sage Hospitality. Sage also had an interest in selling group, which included Fundamental Advisors LP. Sage declined comment, and AB didn’t return a call about the transaction. But hotel expert Mike Cahill of Hospitality Real Estate Counselors said the price per key “represents a very good price for the asset and reflects that we’re in an up market.” “Downtown Denver, even with all the new supply, is extremely strong, and I think the pricing, when you get above $255,000 a room, reflects not only the really cool marketing that Sage did with the Curtis but also its ability to generate significant cash flow. The property certainly had the cash flow to justify that price,” he said. The 16-story hotel at 1405 Curtis St. features a different theme on every floor. There are 336 guest rooms and 20,805 square feet of meeting space, along with the Corner Office restaurant and bar, a gift shop, fitness facility and garage parking.
JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality Group handled the transaction. The Curtis, which was updated a year ago, previously sold in 2012 for $68.4 million. The 364-room Crowne Plaza Denver sold to THPT IHG-2 Properties Trust, an affiliate of Hospitality Properties Trust. DHM Denver Land LP, which is affiliated with Silverpeak Real Estate Partners, was the seller.“Roughly $200,000 a key, again, represents the strength of the Denver market and how investors allover the country really do love Denver, and they especially love downtown Denver,” Cahill commented.
HPT said the property was “reasonably maintained” but hasn’t been renovated for about eight years. A complete renovation is planned. “The Crowne Plaza Denver Downtown is a nice addition to our portfolio that includes a geographically diverse group of well maintained full-service, select service and extended-stay hotels and travel centers operated under long-term management and lease agreements. It is a well-located central business district hotel two blocks from the Denver Convention Center and it has approximately 9,000 square feet of meeting space, two food and beverage outlets (Off Sixteenth and The Place) and substantial structured parking,” said John Murray, Hospitality Properties Trust president and chief operating officer. IHG will manage the property. The Crowne Plaza offers a grand ballroom with seating for 430, a seasonal outdoor pool and a fitness center.