MHI had previously announced an agreement to acquire the commercial space of the hotel, which had originally been planned as a hotel condominium. Under the purchase agreement, the hotel condominium portion will be eliminated. "The South Florida market for hotel condominiums has not been as strong as the developer had hoped," MHI Hollywood CFO Bill Zaiser tells GlobeSt.com. "It was decided that a condo hotel would not be viable."

MHI plans to complete the transaction through a joint venture structure and plans to retain a 25% equity position in the hotel. A contiguous hotel development site owned by MCZ/Centrum will be leased to MHI for four years with an option to purchase the site at any time during the lease. The closing is expected to occur in the third quarter. Zaiser says the contiguous site will be used for parking initially, but may be developed into a hotel in the future. "Should the market indicate a hotel is a viable option, we may pursue development of one," he says.

The hotel, located on a barrier island between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean, is currently undergoing renovations and is closed. It is expected that the hotel will reopen in October, in time for the closing of the transaction, Zaiser says.

The property includes 12,000 sf of meeting space, a retail food and beverage outlet, an outdoor swimming pool and 300 valet parking spaces. "The Crowne Plaza Sian Resort, with its prime South Florida coastal location, is an attractive and highly promising property," says MHI Hospitality Corp. president and CEO Andrew M. Sims. "The resort also extends our footprint into the dynamic South Florida hospitality market."