The Portland Development Commission paid Gene Ferryman $5.2 million for the run-down Best Western in July, in part because the land, if combined with other adjacent parcels, could be used for a real convention center hotel, one in excess of 500 rooms. In the meantime, though, because it was run-down and adjacent the convention center, which is undergoing a $90-million expansion, the City wanted to purchase the property in order to give it a facelift.

The PDC's Michael McElwee tells GlobeSt.com that the City decided to take the hotel independent because Best Western was demanding some pretty hefty improvements if the city wanted to keep the affiliation. "They wanted us to send them $50,000 so they could come in and draft a property improvement plan that would ultimately call for between $600,000 and $800,000 in improvements," says McElwee. "So we decided it would be better to close the hotel and re-open it as an independent."

The three-year deal with Wright Hotels was closed Thursday afternoon. It calls for the PDC and the Wright Hotels subsidiary to put up a combined $90,000 for upgrades, including basic shell improvements as well as new beds and new computers. Once revenues are such that the investment can be paid back, the City and Wright Hotels would split any subsequent upside on a 50-50 basis, McElwee tells GlobeSt.com.