Lowe officials couldn't be reached by GlobeSt.com's publication deadline to confirm the estimated sales price or the company's near-future plans for the property. However, in a prepared statement, Bleecker Seaman, managing director, Lowe Enterprises Investors, says his company plans to invest another $21 million "to completely renovate and upgrade the appearance and systems, creating a luxury hotel experience."
In the same statement, Bernard N. Siegel, executive vice president, Lowe Hospitality Group and senior vice president, Lowe's Destination Hotels & Resorts, says the company also plans to add 4,370 sf of corporate meeting and special events space to the existing 12,500 sf of meeting space. The renovations are expected to be completed by September 2007.
Lowe Enterprises Investors bought the hotel for its subsidiary, Lowe Hospitality Investment Partners which Seaman says is a $266-million discretionary fund that invests solely in hotel and resort properties. A Tampa hospitality industry source tells GlobeSt.com the estimated $39-million sales price may be a conservative number.
"Luxury hotels today go up for no less than $200,000 a room and often as high as $500,000 a room, depending on location and the deep pockets of the owner," the broker, who spoke on condition of anonymity, tells GlobeSt.com. "If they [Lowe Enterprises] got it between $90,000 and $120,000 a room, they got themselves a bargain."
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