The Hyatt name is poised for a stronger presence in Chicago, its corporate base, following the rebranding of the Wyndham Chicago later this year.
Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. will rebrand the 417-room Streeterville hotel as the Hyatt Chicago Magnificent Mile after its $88.4 million purchase of the property from an affiliate of the Blackstone Group in a deal announced Wednesday. The rebranding is expected June 1, Hyatt Hotels Corp. said.
The acquisition will be funded with $30 million in cash and $58.4 million in company stock, Sunstone reported in its earnings announcement Wednesday. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter and to be followed by a $25 million renovation, partly funded by Hyatt.
The hotel at 633 N. St. Clair St. will be managed by Davidson Hotels & Resorts under a franchise agreement with an affiliate of Hyatt.
“We believe Hyatt is the most attractive brand for this hotel due to Hyatt’s ability to attract high-end business travel and corporate groups, including the vast number of medical meetings generated within walking distance of the hotel,” Ken Cruse, Sunstone president and chief executive, said in a statement.
The hotel is located near Northwestern Memorial Hospital and its Feinberg School of Medicine, and the Ann & Robert Lurie Children’s Memorial Hospital, which will open in June.
Chicago’s hotel inventory includes the Hyatt Regency Chicago and the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place, both convention-oriented properties, and the Park Hyatt Chicago, a luxury offering.
Separately, the Affinia Chicago, a 213-room hotel at 166 E. Superior St., has been sold and will be rebranded as MileNorth, a Chicago Hotel.
Lowe Enterprises Investors, on behalf of an investment client, bought the 28-story property from Denihan Hospitality Group. Terms were not disclosed when the deal was announced Thursday.
Destination Hotels & Resorts, an affiliate of Lowe, will take over management of the hotel.
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