Boutique Hotel Co. bought the Westward Look Resort, a four-star resort located 10 miles north of the city in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains. The resort was sold by SHC Westward Look LLC.

"The acquisition of the Westward Look Resort represented a transaction with considerable value enhancement potential," says Mark Gordon, managing director of Sonnenblick-Goldman's International Lodging & Leisure Group, which negotiated the sale. "While the resort is in need of renovation, the opportunity exists, with a defined operating strategy, to create a unique conference center and spa resort."

The resort sits on 75 acres, 40 of which are zoned but undeveloped. It has 244 rooms, 8,100 sf of meeting space, and a 3,400-sf wellness center that offers a variety of spa services. The resort was built in 1912 and has 39 freestanding buildings that are designed as adobe style casitas.

"The property can support a variety of uses, including additional meeting space and guest rooms, as well as development of a time-share component, which would significantly enhance the value of the resort," Gordon says.

The spate of limited-service hotels that have come onto the market in the past five years has hurt resort occupancies in both Tucson and Phoenix. Much of those new hotel rooms have now been absorbed by increased demand, and occupancies are starting to rebound. Even with the recovery, competition for resort business in Tucson remains fierce.

"It's a very competitive market there," John Montgomery, president of Denver-based Horwath Hospitality Consulting/Montgomery & Associates tells GlobeSt.com. "They're competing against world-class resorts like Canyon Ranch and Loew's Ventana Canyon Resort. So the service level has to be very, very high."

Boutique Hotel Co. declined to disclose the sale price.

Instant Insights /

New York Firm Purchases Tucson Resort and Prepares for Expansion and Renovation

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