as previously reported by GlobeSt.com.

Bethesda, MD-based RLJ Development is headed by Robert L. Johnson, founder of Black Entertainment Television and owner of the Charlotte Bobcats and Charlotte Sting professional teams. Representatives from Inland and RLJ were not available for further comment.

The portfolio consists of a total of 4,061 rooms. The hotels in the portfolio consist of "upper upscale and upscale full and select-service hotels" that are operated by brands including Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt, according to a released statement from Inland on the acquisition. The hotels are "in major urban markets that Inland American Lodging believes to have strong barriers to entry and are less sensitive to economic changes," the released statement says. The portfolio includes the Marriott Chicago, a 113-room hotel constructed in 1988 at 625 S. Ashland Ave. in the Illinois Medical District. The portfolio also includes hotels in New Jersey, Maryland, Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Ohio, Colorado, Massachusetts, Arizona, New York and Washington, DC, according to information on RLJ's website.

The oldest hotel in the portfolio is the 179-room Hilton Garden Inn Burlington, in Burlington, MA, which was constructed in 1971. The newest hotel is the 158-room Hyatt Place Medford, in Medford, MA, which was constructed in 2003, according to RLJ's website. Craig Lambert, senior vice president of asset management, is in charge of asset management for the recently acquired properties, as well as the entire Inland American Lodging portfolio.

RLJ was "able to deploy our capital, execute our business plan and liquidate the RLJ Urban Fund in less than four years, with significant returns realized for our investors," said company president Thomas J. Baltimore Jr. in a released statement. Marcel Verbaas and Eddie Hendriksen, with Inland American Lodging, represented Inland in the transaction, with Shefsky & Froelich Ltd acting as legal counsel.

Instant Insights /

Inland American Buys 22 Hotels for $900M

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