L.A. investor buys 3 Woodlands hotels
Lowe, a Los Angeles real estate investment company, has acquired a trio of hotels in The Woodlands from the Howard Hughes Corp. as part of Hughes’ previously announced plan to sell off $2 billion in non-core assets.
The deal, announced by Hughes, adds 909 rooms to the Lowe portfolio. The $252 million purchase was made in joint venture with an institutional investor and equates to about $277,000 per room.
The properties consist of The Woodlands Resort, a 402-room property developed as part of the master-planned community in 1974; The Westin at The Woodlands, a 302-room contemporary style hotel built in 2016 along the Waterway Square public plaza;
and Embassy Suites by Hilton, The Woodlands at Hughes Landing, a 205-room hotel overlooking Lake Woodlands built in 2015.
Lowe plans a $25 million capital investment program at the three hotels. At The Woodlands
Resort, which has a lazy river water ride and expansive meeting facilities, plans include redeveloping the 10,000-square-foot spa and pool with renovated indoor and outdoor spaces, expanding
and modernizing the fitness facility and transforming the dining and bar options.
Planned renovations also include upgrades to the guest rooms, the meeting and conference space and public areas at The Westin at The Woodlands and refreshing the guest rooms at the Embassy Suites by Hilton.
Lowe’s CoralTree Hospitality subsidiary, which took over management of the properties in September, will continue to manage the hotels.
“The Woodlands hotel portfolio acquisition is consistent with our broader hospitality investment strategy that targets quality, fullservice hotels and resorts that draw significant leisure travel, but also cater to corporate and group business,” Mike Lowe, co-CEO of Lowe, said in an announcement. “Business has grown steadily over the past five years and the hotels have weathered the downturn and are rebounding strongly.”
As leisure travel has returned, occupancy at all three hotels rose in the second quarter since the end of 2020, reaching 68 percent at the Embassy Suites, 49 percent at the Westin at The Woodlands and 31 percent at The Woodlands Resort, according to Hughes Corp. The hotels were closed for two to three months at the onset of the pandemic last year.
The acquisition follows another recently announced hotel deal. CoralTree, in partnership with Lowe, acquired a controlling interest in the Magnolia Hotels brand from Denverbased Stout Street Hospitality.
As part of the transaction, CoralTree will manage the Magnolia Hotel in downtown Houston.
The hospitality industry has been dealt a blow by COVID-19. Business travel revenue is projected to decline by 68 percent in 2021 compared to 2019, according to a report by the American Hotel Lodging Association and Kalibri Labs.
The divestiture is part of Hughes’ 2019 plan targeting $600 million in net proceeds from the sale of $2 billion in non-core assets, the company said. So far, it has netted $376 million.
Hughes Corp. owns, manages and develops commercial, residential and mixeduse real estate throughout the U.S. Its developments include The Woodlands, Bridgeland and The Woodlands Hills in the Houston area.
Greenberg Traurig represented the Lowe venture in the purchase, while K&L Gates provided legal counsel to Hughes Corp. CBRE and JLL represented the seller.
Founded by Robert J. Lowe in 1972, Lowe has acquired, developed or managed over $32 billion of real estate assets.
Room to grow
Spruce Power, a Houstonbased solar energy company, leased 33,749 square feet in Two Memorial City Plaza for a larger headquarters.
The building at 820 Gessner is owned and managed by MetroNational. Joshua Brown, John Luck, Reggie Beavan and Audrey Selber represented the tenant in the transaction.
“When we moved Spruce from California to Houston in 2018, we knew we were moving a fast growing new power company to the longtime hub of North American power and energy,” CEO Christian Fong said in an announcement. “We took a chance on Houston and its business infrastructure, and it has worked out as we’ve grown into America’s largest privately-held residential solar company.”
Roots firmly planted
Becks Prime, a Houstonbased hamburger chain with 11 locations in Houston in Dallas, is celebrating its 36th anniversary with tree seedling giveaways and donations to local non-profit Trees for Houston.
“With 2020 delaying our 35th anniversary celebrations, we wanted to take the opportunity to honor year 36 in a way that gives back not only to our customers, but to our community as a whole,” Becks Prime President Molly Voorhees said in an announcement. “Trees for Houston has always been very special to me personally and professionally as an organization that protects trees throughout the Houston area.”
The event supports Trees for Houston and celebrates the centuries old oak trees at Becks Prime’s Augusta at Westheimer location. The root system spans spans about 14,000 square feet and reaches all the way under Westheimer. The company will donate $1 for every burger sold to Trees for Houston Friday, Sept. 17. Volunteers will hand out seedlings at 2615 Augusta and 2902 Kirby Drive from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Memorial Park from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Becks Prime was founded by Win Campbell, Mike Knapp and John Storms in 1985.