Nailing down financing for a hotel project has always been tricky but in the post-9/11 recession world it's gotten even tougher. A number of hotel projects in the area--most notably the 1,120-room headquarters hotel being built by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide on the South Boston waterfront right near the new convention center--have had trouble financing their projects.

While Christopher Barkidjija, commercial loan officer at Corus, acknowledges the reality of the current climate for hotel financing, he tells GlobeSt.com that this deal had a number of elements that convinced the bank to invest. "Frankly, the developer was able to get us comfortable with the equity players," he says. "Also, we are active in hotel construction lending and Kimpton is a well-known boutique hotel." Barkidjija adds that the hotel's location, in a major metropolitan area, also made the project attractive.

David Leatherwood, president of Portland Street Hotel, a Vermont-based company, emphasizes that the bank's "team" approach to the lending process helped ensure the success of the deal. "Throughout the process I always felt that our interests were mutually aligned," he says.