NEWPORT BEACHSIDE’S $42M TRANSFORMATION: The former Newport Beachside Hotel & Resort in Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., is undergoing a $42 million transformation by HB Capital Group to reopen as The Sunny. The beachside resort is expected to open later this year. Family-owned and operated for over 40 years, the resort is close to Miami’s Sunny Isles Beach Newport Fishing Pier. The resort’s design is being led by Florida-based EoA Group. The hotel will offer 339 rooms, a private art collection, six dining options, a spa and salon, a fitness center, an ocean-facing pool with a tiki bar and fire pits, a beach club and more than 22,000 square feet of event space (including an outdoor terrace). The resort also includes 300 linear feet of linear beachfront. The hotel will be managed by Davidson Resorts, a specialized operating division of Davidson Hospitality Group.
NEOM’S NEW LUXURY ECOTOURISM DESTINATION: Saudi Arabia will soon add a new luxury ecotourism destination with Zardun. An exclusive sanctuary resort developed by NEOM, the sustainable region of Zardun will be located in the northwest part of Saudi Arabia. Overlooking the Gulf of Aqaba, Zardun will be a nature-based resort spanning 4 square kilometers and featuring four ultra-luxury buildings. The development will consist of three luxury boutique hotels offering a combined 100 rooms and suites. Zardun will have native flora and fauna and stretch from the mountains to the seashore. Zardun is the latest in a series of coastal properties that are part of the ongoing project taking place throughout the NEOM region, joining Leyja, Epicon, Siranna, Utamo, Norlana and Aquellum as sustainable tourism destinations within the Gulf of Aqaba.
KSL CLOSES OVER $3B CONTINUATION VEHICLE FOR ALTERRA: KSL Capital Partner, LLC has closed a single-asset continuation vehicle for Alterra Mountain Co., with commitments of more than $3 billion. This includes the commitments of the general partner and rollover investors. Created in 2017 through a joint venture with an affiliate of Henry Crown & Co., Alterra was established along with Intrawest Resorts, Mammoth Resorts, Palisades Tahoe and Deer Valley Resort. Denver-based Alterra consists of year-round mountain destinations and heli-skiing operations. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC served as financial advisor to KSL on the deal. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Hogan Lovells US LLP served as legal advisors to KSL.
$$5M REFINANCING FOR CHICAGO HOTEL: Ross Walker, the co-founder and partner at Hawkins Way Capital, has closed a $5.22 million refinancing loan with Symetra Life Insurance Co. as the lender for Found Chicago, its Sonder-run River North hotel. Brokered by Meridian Capital Group, the loan will provide funding for the continuation of operations at the 60-room hotel. The hotel is housed in the former Olympia Building, which was built in the 1910s and acquired by Hawkins Way in 2016. The rebranded hotel opened in 2018 and has been leased by Sonder. Found Chicago includes a restaurant, café and a speakeasy-style bar.
HYATT CENTRIC ADDS IN MEXICO: Hyatt Hotels Corp. has announced its second Hyatt Centric hotel in Mexico. Hyatt has collaborated with Inmobiliaria Canels, SA de CV and GACO&BA to open Hyatt Centric Querétaro in Querétaro, Mexico. The hotel will be close to the Historic Monument Zone of Querétaro, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Scheduled to open in 2025, the three-story full-service hotel will have 105 rooms and suites, a lobby-level ballroom, a multi-functional events area, several dining concepts, a rooftop pool and a fitness center. The hotel will also include the Pineda Covalin boutique.