Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Hawkins Way Capital, in a joint venture with Värde Partners, has acquired 525 Lexington Avenue in Midtown, Manhattan. The structure consists of a 35-story, 655-room, 406,261-square-foot tower.
The 1924-built structure had been a Marriott-branded hotel before closing at the beginning of the pandemic.
With more than 3,500 new units and more than $1.3 billion in investments, this is Hawkins Way Capital’s ninth acquisition in the last five quarters. The Lexington Avenue property will be added to a network of more than 5,700 units and 9,500 beds managed by an affiliate of Hawkins Way Capital.
“525 Lexington represents an opportunity to increase our footprint in the heart of Manhattan on a favorable basis. We believe the property will benefit from an injection of fresh equity and perspective to help weather economic and financial market headwinds and remain bullish on long-term growth and a sustained recovery of the New York market in general,” said Ross Walker, Hawkins Way Capital’s co-founder and managing partner. “We look forward to continuing to structure viable exit opportunities for existing landlords and grow our presence on the East Coast.”
Co-founded by Managing Partners Ross Walker and Karan Suri, Hawkins Way Capital has $2.5 billion of assets under management.