Westin to Open Condo Hotel on St. Marten in Caribbean

A new Westin hotel, the Westin St. Maarten Dawn Beach Resort & Spa, will open on the Caribbean island of St. Maarten in December 2006. The property will fly the Westin flag and is developed, owned and managed by Columbia Sussex, developer, owner and operator of more than 85 hotels and seven casinos around the world.

The resort will offer 317 guest rooms and suites (most with ocean views), multiple oceanfront dining options, two lounges, a full-service spa, a casino, retail shops, one of the island's largest freshwater infinity pools with 17 pool side and beach cabanas, a hot tub, swim-up bar and expansive meeting and event facilities.

Ninety-nine for-sale condominiums are located on the resort grounds and comprise The Westin St. Maarten Dawn Beach Residences. The condominiums are currently under development and range in price from US$895,000 to US$2 million. Owners will be able to enjoy full access to all of the resort's services and amenities.

“Expansion in the Caribbean is key to our growth strategy,” said Sue Brush, senior vice president of Westin Hotels & Resorts. “A resort of this caliber on the magnificent Dawn Beach is an ideal addition to our global collection of hotels. In keeping with the Westin brand promise, guests at The Westin St. Maarten Dawn Beach will benefit from relaxation and personal renewal.”

Situated on Dawn Beach, one of the best of the 37 pristine beaches on the 37-square-mile island, the resort and condominium homes feature balconies, French doors and oversized bathrooms. All of the resort's guestroom suites and residences feature the Westin brand's signature Heavenly Bed and Heavenly Bath. Guests of the resort can also enjoy the WestinWORKOUT Powered by Reebok fitness facility.

Resort dining fuses local island flavor, uncompromising service, quality and spectacular views. Five dining options exist.  Ocean views are a feature at all resort restaurants. Additionally, 24-hour room service is available.

The 10,124 square-foot Hibiscus Spa, specializing in massage, features 13 treatment rooms.

The resort can accommodate events both large and small with more than 20,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space.  

Trump Leads Boom With Baja Condo Hotel

By Sam Hodgson

The Daily Transcript

November 16, 2006

On Monday, in sales outlets in Hawaii and Japan, Donald Trump set a new world record for single-day property sales, pawning off more than $700 million worth of condo hotels at his new five-star Waikiki resort within a matter of hours.

 

Come December, he's hoping to repeat the feat on a somewhat smaller scale for his latest undertaking, The Trump Ocean Resort in Baja Mexico.

 

The 562-unit, Baja-based hotel-condominium has already garnered international attention, drawing prospective buyers from Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal and Australia. But it won't be until

Trump holds a selection event in early December 2006 that would-be buyers will find out how big of a slice they can take out of the Trump-Baja pie.

 

In Waikiki, the selection event resulted in celebrities such as Don Ho buying as big as they could, locking up rooms that ranged in price from the $400,000s to as high as $9 million for the most upscale penthouses.

 

In Trump's Baja condo hotel development, which sits about 12 miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border, prices will begin in the mid-$200,000s. Still, the developers of the project contend that it will be the most luxurious development in all of Baja, and say that many other speculators and condo buyers are in agreement with them.

 

The developers have already received inquiries from thousands of prospective buyers across the world who eagerly await the selection event. There, buyers will meet with sellers during an appointment time and hammer out the terms of a purchase agreement.

 

Jason Grosfeld, principal of Irongate -- the firm accompanying Trump on the project -- said the event will likely be held in San Diego on Dec. 8 or 9, although final details are not yet clear.

What is clear, however, is that Trump's foray into the booming Baja condo market marks a coming of age for the area.

 

Hotel owners throughout the region have already begun to point to Trump's property not as competition, but as a tool that will help drive tourism to the region. Already, the economy of the Northern Baja region is largely driven by tourism.

 

Hugo Torres, the owner of the Rosarito Beach Hotel, said that about 90 percent of the business between the border and Ensenada is from American clientele. He said Trump's resort will continue to bolster that figure, despite significant looming problems associated with long border waits. This, he said, is the key factor that holds down development in Baja.

 

"If we didn't have the border problem, we'd probably have 10 times as many hotels," Torres said earlier this year.

 

Grosfeld said he plans to reduce the effects of the long border wait by offering a charter from San Diego to the doorstep of the hotel that will take an expedited line across the border. He said he expects condo residents will likely purchase a SENTRI (Secure Electronic Network for Rapid Inspections) pass, which enables them to use the special line.

 

But regardless of the border traffic, the success of Trump's Waikiki property underscores the value of the billionaire's name emblazoned across the hotel's façade.

 

"It seems to be garnering an international interest," Grosfeld said. "And once again, that's probably because of Trump."

 

Read more about Trump Baja here.

http://www.condohotelcenter.com/condo-hotels/non-us/trump-baja.htm

Over 500 Leading Hotel Owners & Developers to Gather in Las Vegas

NEW YORK, Nov. 14 -- Information Management Network (IMN), the largest organizer of condo hotel conferences, along with Condo Hotel Center, the largest seller of condo hotels worldwide, will host over 500 top owners, developers, and service providers at its annual Las Vegas Symposium on Financing, Developing and Operating Condo Hotels.

 

It will be held from November 30-December 1, 2006 at The Mirage in Las Vegas, Nevada.

 

These condo hotel events, held annually in both Las Vegas and Florida, have consistently grown in stature and have become the key condo hotel industry gatherings nationwide.

 

"I attend the IMN condo hotel conferences because the speakers and participants are pioneers in an industry that could boom in the next five years," said Jody Kriss, Senior Vice President, Bayrock Group, LLC.

 

"The condominium form of ownership has the potential to revolutionize the hospitality industry the way it did the multi-family industry and we want to maintain a leadership position as this transformation evolves."

 

As the largest events of their kind, these condo hotel symposia are the foremost meeting places to educate new market entrants and discuss the latest transactions and industry developments.

 

This year, over 40 condo hotel owners will bring their real-life experiences to the table and over 40 service providers will be exhibiting at the symposium.

 

"For me, the most valuable part of the program in Las Vegas is the opportunity to share thoughts about difficult issues with other practitioners in this area. It was extremely helpful to be in a position to discuss the problems that we are all facing and to obtain other points of view on them," said Paul Berkowitz, Esq., Greenberg Traurig, P.A.

 

Featuring over 100 leading industry speakers, this year's program will focus on the very latest trends and developments. The event will feature regional roundtables, as well as over 30 panel discussions covering the most recent industry issues, key regulatory developments and operations matters. Panel topics include:

 

• THE OUTLOOK FOR CONDO HOTELS IN 2007: TAPPING INTO THE BEST OPPORTUNITIES

 

• THE DEVELOPMENT OF INTERNATIONAL MARKETS: IDENTIFYING THE HOT SPOTS

 

• THE BIG LAUNCH: EFFECTIVELY GENERATING THE BUZZ

 

• EVALUATING AMENITY DECISIONS: WHAT ARE THE 'MUST HAVES' FOR CONDO HOTELS NOW AND IN THE FUTURE?

 

• CONDO HOTEL SALES: HOW THE LEADING MARKETERS AND BROKERS ARE SELLING

 

• CONDO HOTELS IN A COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT

 

"Where else to better understand condo hotels than at the condo hotel conference

in Las Vegas? The city is literally the center of the universe, the cutting edge, for a variety of condo hotel structures," said Jay Neveloff, Partner, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP.

 

For more information about this condo hotel conference, please visit

http://www.condohotelcenter.com/industry-news/in77.htm. 

 

Or contact Susan Greene at Susan@CondoHotelCenter.com, 407-578-5528, to request a conference agenda and a registration form.

Trump Ocean Resort in Baja, Mexico – Amazingly Affordable

Reserve Your Trump Baja Condo Hotel Unit Today

If you've ever considered buying into a Trump property, the Trump Ocean Club Resort Baja Mexico is your big chance.  Units can be reserved right now at preconstruction prices. 

The Trump Baja will be a 525-suite five-star condo hotel resort.  Located in North Baja, Mexico, the site is just 30 minutes from downtown San Diego. It will have a dramatic, cliff-side location, overlooking the Pacific Ocean and the Coronado Islands.

Prices Start in the Mid $200,000s

Trump Baja will encompass three 26-story towers. The first tower, which is what is currently being offered, will be the middle building with 195 condo hotel units.  And prices are surprisingly affordable for a Trump property.  Units in this first phase start in the mid-$200,000s.  The other two buildings to be offered in 2007 will be higher priced.

All residences will enjoy breathtaking unobstructed ocean views with a focus on indoor/outdoor living. Trump Baja will cater to owners and guests with an impressive range of facilities: concierge services; lobby bar & lounge; pool bar & café; fine-dining restaurant; infinity-edge swimming pool; lap and family pools; full-service spa; state-of-the-art fitness center; tennis courts; walking trails; and shopping venues.

"Trump Ocean Club Resort Baja will set the standard of premier property ownership and excellence in service for all of Northern Mexico," said Donald Trump.

A Phenomenal Location

Trump Baja is located in Baja California, which is the northernmost state of Mexico. It borders the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Sea of Cortez on the east, and its northern limit is the U.S.-Mexico border, adjacent to the state of California. 

Just 30 minutes from downtown San Diego, Baja is the ideal location for an upscale resort property.

Despite its proximity to major cities, the area offers some of the finest beaches, sailing, fishing, kayaking, and whale-watching anywhere on the Pacific coast. Fabulous vineyard tours are only 30 minutes away. The area has been a vacation retreat for generations of Southern Californian's.

Situated on 17 acres of pristine land, overlooking the Pacific and the Coronado Islands, Trump Baja will be North Baja's first resort to combine luxury resort facilities and services with property ownership. 

A Variety of Unit Sizes 

Trump Baja will feature studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom residences, ranging from 700 sq. ft. to 4,500 sq. ft.

All residences will have contemporary outdoor living/dining spaces offering panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean and Coronado Islands. Undeniably modern in decor, yet authentically Mexican in spirit, the spacious residences at Trump Baja will bring a new height of refined luxury to North Baja.

The residences will be delivered fully furnished and will feature rose-wood cabinetry, limestone counter tops, marble or travertine floors, and top-of-the line appliances and facilities.

Construction is scheduled to begin in late 2006 with completion of the first tower scheduled for late 2008. Build-out of the resort (all three towers) will take a total of three to four years.

Trump Baja will be developed as a partnership between the Trump Organization and Irongate, a Los Angeles-based real estate development and investment company with a successful track record.

Affordable Prices...Especially for a Trump!

These days, no name is hotter in real estate than Donald Trump's.  The mere mention of the Trump name is enough to send real estate values soaring.

If you've always wanted to own a piece of a Trump, the Trump Baja is your big opportunity.  Firm prices have not yet been established, as this property opportunity is very early in the development process.  But just knowing that they start in the $200,000's when other Trump developments start at more than three times as much such as $799,000 for Trump International, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and at $815,000 for Trump Chicago makes Trump Baja an amazingly affordable and attractive property investment.

Owners of Trump Baja condo hotel units will have an opportunity to participate in a professionally-managed rental program. They can use their condos when they want and receive rent revenue when they’re not there. The management company will handle all guest service issues as well as operate the condo hotel.

To take part in this pre-launch, a fully-refundable $5,000 deposit is required. This will give potential buyers a place in line for the selection of a specific unit on a time-stamped (first come, first served) priority basis. The unit selection event is expected to take place in December 2006, at which time contracts will be available.

Want to know more?  Click here for details!

http://www.condohotelcenter.com/condo-hotels/non-us/trump-baja.htm

Or contact us at info@CondoHotelCenter.com and request our Trump Baja data sheet.

Trump's Condo Hotel In Greenwich Village Seen as Precedent

By Sarah Ryley

Reprinted from Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Oct. 19, 2006

BROOKLYN -- Condo hotels are one of the hottest new trends in real estate. In the three years since the first was built in south Florida, at least 115 have been built or are under construction in premiere cities around the world, with one glaring omission? New York.

Donald Trump would build the first if his proposed 45-story luxury condo-hotel is approved for a location a few blocks away from SoHo, in a Greenwich Village manufacturing district that permits only conventional hotels.

His project has Brooklyn leaders in Williamsburg, Greenpoint and Red Hook concerned that it could set a precedent for other real estate developers looking for a "back door" around zoning regulations in their hard-fought manufacturing districts.

"Chelsea and Greenwich are hot areas; Greenpoint and Williamsburg are hot areas, too," said Brian T. Coleman, CEO of the Greenpoint Manufacturing Design Center. "It's not off the charts to say that someone may be willing to attempt to do the same thing here."

He said the hard-fought Williamsburg-Greenpoint rezoning passed in 2005 protected manufacturers, the majority of whom rent, from the pressure they or their landlords were getting to convert industrial buildings into far more lucrative residential units.

Joel Greene, a condo-hotel broker for Condo Hotel Center, said a "source who said he's with the people doing the finances on the project" told him yesterday afternoon that Trump project will break ground on Nov. 1 and kick off sales on Nov. 15.

"They do have permits to do some demolition and some work, but no building permit has been issued," said Tori Edmiston, press secretary for the NYC Department of Buildings. She said the department is also working with the Department of City Planning "to consider appropriate enforcement measures."

This would come as a surprise to the elected officials and activists opposing the 246 Spring St. Trump project, who when interviewed this week were under the impression that the matter was still caught up in a zoning debate.

That's because city zoning regulations permit only transient hotels in manufacturing districts, not residential ones with tenants staying in units for more than 29 consecutive days. Greene said he's unaware of any condo-hotels in manufacturing districts, and that to his knowledge they are all zoned as residential units.

Part Hotel, Part Condo

Condo hotels are part condominium, part hotel and part time share. The units are owned by individuals, who receive all the amenities of a four- or five-star hotel, including concierge and room service.

When the owners aren't using their condo, they turn the keys over to a management service that rents out the unit and gives the owners a portion of the money, which can be used to offset the mortgage, for example.

Rachael Raynoff, press secretary for the Department of City Planning, said the department recognizes that "the condo-hotel model may present an enhanced risk of unlawful residential occupancy," and is working with Buildings to clarify what constitutes a transient use and how to enforce the residential restriction.

Greene said he regularly gets inquiries about condo-hotels in New York, and has a VIP waiting list of over 100 people wanting the first shot at making an offer on the Greenwich Village property.

He said the location for Trump's "SoHo" project is unique because "most condo-hotels are built in oceanfront resorts, Las Vegas strip, downtown areas, like downtown Miami and downtown Chicago," not manufacturing districts, even though SoHo is one of the city's hottest addresses.

And, Greene said he expects the units to start in the low $800,000s, whereas "the average investor is looking to invest around $300,000."

When asked if he could foresee less expensive condo-hotel units selling in some of Brooklyn's hip neighborhoods, like Williamsburg, he responded, "You put Donald Trump's name on it and I could sell it in Haiti."

Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, said, "[Trump] knows if he is able to build here, it will utterly transform the neighborhood by opening the door for other condo-hotels to be built in this neighborhood. And he knows that the same thing could happen to other desirable manufacturing districts throughout the city."

Hot Trend Still Cool in New York

Sheldon Greene, CEO of Condo Hotel Center, said he was a little mystified as to why the hot trend has been so "slow and coming to New York City."

While condo hotels are most popular in places like Florida, Las Vegas, Dubai and the Caribbean, they're also big in places like Toronto and Chicago. "A lot of people who live in the suburbs and who frequent Chicago like to have a place of their own. We can give you a four- of five-star hotel, and when you don't want it we can put it in the rental program," he said.

He said, "It's hard to dispute Donald Trump's choice of locations, the guy is a visionary. Maybe he senses that [the Greenwich Village manufacturing district] is a coming area, and maybe it's not the way he wants it now, but it will be one day in the future."

 

Ultra-luxury St. Regis Condo Hotel to open on Fort Lauderdale beach

By Tom Stieghorst
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Posted November 7, 2006

After six years of construction, Broward County's contender in the ultra-luxury hotel market, the St. Regis Resort Fort Lauderdale, is within weeks of opening.

Developer Fred Bullard said Monday that the 166-room condo hotel is expected to open on Dec. 15, 2006.

Although there is a lot of work left to do on the 24-story project, all of the materials and interior furnishings have been delivered.

Bullard said finishing the hotel relies on scheduling enough workers at the right time to hit the mid-December deadline. "It's a manpower issue," Bullard said.

The St. Regis expects to charge around $800 a night this winter for rooms, a rate that Bullard said customers are prepared to accept. Although the average rate for a night in a Broward hotel was about $100 last year, that figure is rising and set to rise even more with the completion of a number of new upscale hotel projects in the pipeline.

Work is under way on a 333-room Hilton hotel, a 517-room W Hotel, and two lodgings that will bear the name of casino magnate Donald Trump.

The St. Regis project, which also will have a condominium and a condo-hotel component, has gone from $140 million when first proposed in 1999 to about $210 million today, Bullard said.

He said design changes were the biggest obstacle to getting the hotel open.

"We're on our third interior designer," said Bullard, who operates a food and real estate conglomerate in Clearwater.

Bullard stepped in to complete the project started by the principal developer, John McDonald, who died unexpectedly of heart failure in December 2004.

Opening the hotel by mid-month would let the property, managed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, reap the premiums associated with holiday travel.

Bullard said the hotel has already sold out its rooms for the Super Bowl, which is set for Feb. 4 at Dolphin Stadium.

Bullard has a special interest in the game, having once owned the Jacksonville Bulls, part of the now-defunct U.S. Football League.

The St. Regis, designed by the Miami firm Arquitectonica, will include a spa, a 12,000-square-foot ballroom, and a pool on the seventh story.

It is terraced so that the shadow thrown by the building during the winter doesn't reach the beach.

A second-story pedestrian bridge will extend to the beach, allowing guests to cross State Road A1A without braving traffic.

St. Regis is asking the City Commission tonight for a design modification that will let the bridge be built without glass, as a hurricane precaution.

When it opens, the Fort Lauderdale property will become the seventh St. Regis in North America and the 12th worldwide.

New Condo-Hotel Plan Submitted for Dania, Florida

By Jennifer Lebovich
The Miami Herald
October 20, 2006

Owners of a boarded-up hotel in the heart of Dania Beach want to build a 14-story condo-hotel on the site.

A developer submitted preliminary plans to the city for the run-down Dania Beach Hotel, which was built on Dania Beach Boulevard east of U.S. 1 in 1925 and has closed in the past year.

The project would have 14,000 square feet of retail space, 2,000 square feet of restaurants and 308 condo-hotel units, according to a site plan.

Condo-hotel projects have become a trend in Broward cities and coastal areas. In a condo-hotel, investors can buy rooms, which management typically rents out when owners aren't there.

In order for the building to blend in with the neighborhood, it would be 14 stories along Dania Beach Boulevard and shorter along the residential area.

The plans also call for a seven-story parking garage.

The hotel property at 180 E. Dania Beach Blvd. is in the city's community redevelopment area. The city is currently updating zoning codes for that part of the city.

''I'm pleased to hear it's in,'' said City Manager Ivan Pato, who had not seen the plans. ``. . .I think the right project on this property can be very successful. The site is on what will be the main boulevard in this city for years to come. The existing building needs to come down -- and the sooner the better.''

Last year, the city decided the dilapidated building was an eyesore and considered forcing the owners to sell.

Back then, the city proposed grouping the hotel property with some others and reselling them to a developer to build a project with retail on the ground floor and condominiums above.

The block, on East Dania Beach Boulevard east of U.S. 1, is in an area the city has declared blighted.

''It's exciting to see something, but at the same time we don't want to rush to things that are not good for the city,'' said Commissioner Anne Castro, who has not seen the plans. ``We do have a unique quality in our city, a quaintness, and while I'm excited there's a project there, I want to make sure it fits in with Dania Beach.''

Across the street from the Dania Beach Hotel, the old Pirate's Inn, another hotel and liquor store, is scheduled to be razed.

The city recently approved plans for a 14-story condo with stores and restaurant space on the site.

A Hialeah-based group known as Dania Beach Hotel LLP bought the hotel in November 2002 for $2.4 million, according to property records.

By 2003, the group submitted plans to turn the hotel into a condominium and preserve part of the hotel for historical purposes. Those plans expired, so the developer now must submit new plans.

The city has asked the developer to meet with neighboring residents to discuss the most recent proposal, said Laurence Leeds, Dania Beach's community development director.

MGM Project City Center, Sales to Begin

Nov. 4, 2006

In just a few weeks, the first condo hotel units at MGM Project City Center will be able to be reserved. The president of Condo Hotel Center, Joel Greene, will be a keynote speaker at the launch of reservation sales of this project which is destined to be one of the most incredible properties in Las Vegas.

The first condo hotel in MGM Project City Center will be the 50-story Vdara. It will have 1,543 condo hotel units for sale, ranging from 500 square feet to 1,850 square feet.

There will also be several residential condominium projects within MGM Project City Center. However, for those people seeking a Las Vegas vacation home, one which will generate rent revenue when they're not using it, Vdara is their best bet.

MGM Project City Center will be a $7 billion project spanning 60 acres. Construction has just begun (late 2006) and is expected to be complete by 2010.

To learn more and register to receive information on MGM Project City Center from Joel Greene and Condo Hotel Center as soon as the condo hotel and residential condo properties become available, visit www.condohotelcenter.com/condo-hotels/featured-properties/mgm-city-center.htm.

Carlton to Arrange $413M Financing for Trump Soho Hotel Condo

October 27, 2006
By Tom Dworetzky, News Editor, Commercial Property News

Carlton’s Hospitality Group is close to arranging approximately $310 million of senior construction debt and $62 million of mezzanine/preferred equity financing for the construction of Trump SoHo, a luxury hotel condominium in Manhattan, according to its parent, Carlton Advisory Services Inc.

The project, at the intersection of Spring and Varick Streets in the internationally known neighborhood, is being developed in a joint venture between The Trump Organization, The Sapir Group and Bayrock Group.

"We originally financed the land acquisition and have now been in the market to arrange the debt for the development and are just about finished."

John Bralower, president of Carlton’s Hospitality Group, told CPN, adding that it has taken a month or two so far to line up the construction financing.

"This is the perfect product for this location," he added, "Think about international people," he pointed out.

"They love New York. It's better than ever, but they're not going to want to stay here for 365 days a year." This way they can own one of the hotel's rooms and use it for extended stays--a perfect New York pied-a-terre.

Construction is slated to start before the end of the year. The 42-story building, designed by Handel Architects, will contain 413 hotel rooms. The developers plan to sell approximately half of the units as hotel condominiums.

The 385,000-square-foot building will feature generous studio and one-bedroom suites averaging over 600 square feet. The hotel will contain a spa managed by one of the world’s preeminent spa operators.

To learn more about the Trump Soho Hotel Condo, visit www.condohotelcenter.com/condo-hotels/featured-properties/trump-soho.htm.