Amstar Sells 496-Room, Full-Service Hilton Near Washington D.C. for $121 Million

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Jan. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Amstar announced today that it sold for $121 million the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center, a 496-room, full-service hotel in the Washington, D.C. submarket of Alexandria, Virginia. Crow Holdings' latest real estate fund, Crow Holdings Realty Partners V, L.P., purchased the hotel.

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Amstar purchased the 30-story property with its joint venture and management partner, Davidson Hotel Company, during June 2005. The purchase price was $93.2 million and the partnership then completed a comprehensive $9.3 million renovation during 2006. After the renovation and having improved operations significantly, Denver-based Amstar refinanced the hotel during June 2007, allowing a full return of equity to its investors. The hotel performed well during the recent economic downturn, providing the foundation for the asset's successful sale. Davidson Hotel Company will continue to manage the hotel.

Currently under construction adjacent to the property are two office towers totaling approximately 1.4 million square feet. During 2011, the first of 6,400 Department of Defense ("DoD") employees will begin working out of this new Mark Center office space as part of a major consolidation of DoD workers in Northern Virginia. The extensive new development is part of the Base Realignment and Closure ("BRAC") program. The new office buildings add to the significant existing multifamily, restaurant, and office space in Mark Center.

"The Hilton Alexandria has been a case study of Amstar's hotel strategy," said Amstar Executive Director Adam Minnick. "Acquiring the property at an attractive basis, improving the physical asset and streamlining the operations were key enablers of adding value, while the refinancing allowed our investors to hold the asset until BRAC became a reality and catalyzed the sale. This investment epitomizes Amstar's nimble, yet patient philosophy."

The hotel, located 4.5 miles from Regan Washington National Airport and directly off Interstate 395 in the Mark Center mixed-use development, has 55,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space including a 9,000-square-foot, IACC-approved Executive Meeting Center and 10,000 square feet of lakeside event space. The hotel boasts 18 suites, an indoor/outdoor pool, a restaurant and numerous other guest amenities. The property borders a 43-acre botanical preserve.

Rob Koger and David Altobello of Molinaro Koger marketed this transaction.

About Amstar

Established in 1987, Amstar is a real estate investment manager that offers both commingled funds and tailored separate accounts to its international and domestic clients. With more than $1.5 billion of assets under management, Amstar's current portfolio consists primarily of office, hospitality, and multifamily holdings within the major markets of the United States and select markets in Europe and Latin America. For more information on Amstar, go to www.amstar.com or contact Amstar Executive Director Rob Toomey at [email protected].

About Davidson

Headquartered in Memphis, Tenn., Davidson Hotel Company is an award-winning, full-service hotel management company that provides management, development/renovation, acquisition, consulting and accounting expertise for the hospitality industry.  The company's portfolio encompasses 46 upscale, full-service independent and branded hotels with more than 13,000 rooms across the United States, including such affiliations as Westin, Sheraton, Hyatt, Marriott, Renaissance, Hilton, Embassy Suites, Doubletree, Radisson and Crowne Plaza.  Additional information on Davidson may be found at the company's Web site, www.davidsonhotels.com.

About Crow Holdings

Crow Holdings (www.crowholdings.com) is a privately owned business based in Dallas, Texas, that makes investments on behalf of the Trammell Crow family and its investment partners. Today, Crow Holdings has a substantial stake in the ownership of various businesses, both real estate and non-real estate related. To date, Crow Holdings Realty Partners V, L.P. is the largest fund sponsored by Crow Holdings, with equity commitments totaling approximately $951 million. Crow Holdings actively acquires all types of real estate both independently and with operating partners.  

SOURCE Amstar