Hotels

PALM SPRINGS, CA-The KOR Hotel Group renames its Estrella Resort & Spa, christening it the Viceroy Palm Springs. The company also plans an expansion of the property.

DENVER-Steve Case, co-founder of America Online, buys a 50% ownership stake in Exclusive Resorts as part of a portfolio of post-AOL investments.

SCOTTSDALE, AZ-Fierce lender competition helps Walton Street Capital to get a favorable rate on a $33.5-million first mortgage and pay down initial debt for the four-year-old, 270-room Scottsdale Marriott at McDowell Mountains.

MANALAPAN, FL-Crescent Real Estate Equities Co. and Westbrook Real Estate Fund IV LP, which each owned 50% of the luxury, 270-key resort here, sold it to an undisclosed private investor.

PHOENIX-The resort owner will pay a dividend of 10 cents, marking the third consecutive payout. The dividend is payable Oct. 10 to qualified shareholders. The last earnings report reflected income of $1.5 million.

SCRANTON, PA-The seven-story franchise unit, owned and operated by West

DIAMONDHEAD, MS-Through its wholly owned subsidiary Casino World Inc., Diamondhead Casino Corp. of Madeira Beach, FL intends to develop a destination casino resort at its 404-acre site on the Bay of St. Louis in Diamondhead.

DALLAS-Ross Perot Jr. wastes no time in backfilling a hole from a developer who took a bye a few months ago. Starwood and Gatehouse Capital will help debut a plan with a 251-room W Hotel, 94 condos, 25,000 sf of retail and some office space.