Done Deals: HFF announces $100 million sale of two resort hotels in St. Pete Beach, FL

Sunday, January 6, 2019

HFF announces $100 million sale of two resort hotels in St. Pete Beach, FL

Grand Plaza Hotel, St. Pete Beach, FL

TAMPA, FL –– Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. (HFF) announces the $100 million sale of the Grand Plaza Hotel and the Beachcomber Beach Resort and Hotel, two waterfront hotels totaling 258 rooms in St. Pete Beach, Florida.

The HFF team marketed the hotels on behalf of the seller, Excel Hospitality Inc. A venture led by Gencom purchased the hotels, and BENCHMARK®, a global hospitality company, will manage the assets.

The HFF investment advisory team representing the seller included senior managing director and head of HFF’s hotel group Daniel C. Peek, director Preston Reid and associate Wyatt Krapf.

Beachcomber Beach Resort and Hotel, 6200 Gulf Boulevard
St. Pete Beach, FL

Situated on 3.71 acres at 5250 Gulf Boulevard, the 156-room Grand Plaza Resort opened in 1975 as a Hilton Hotel and was most recently renovated between 2014 and 2016.

The hotel houses the only revolving rooftop restaurant and lounge in the state of Florida, Spinners Rooftop Revolving Bistro & Lounge, along with three other food and beverage outlets, Bongos Beach Bar & Grille, Level 11 Rooftop Lounge and The Palm Room Restaurant.

Daniel C. Peek

Additional hotel features include direct beachfront access, beach cabanas, heated beachfront swimming pool, private balconies, water sports rentals, 24-hour fitness center, executive business center and 8,000 square feet of flexible meeting space.

The Beachcomber Beach Resort and Hotel is a 102-room beachfront property on 6.27 acres at 6200 Gulf Boulevard.

The two-story hotel hosts daily live entertainment and has two outdoor heated swimming pools; an executive business center; a lush central courtyard and two food and beverage outlets, Jimmy B’s Beach Bar and Grill and Players Sports Bar and Grill.

The hotels are a quarter mile apart and span across a combined 9.98 acres with approximately 450 linear feet of Gulf frontage on St. Pete Beach, which was ranked the 2018 No. 7 “Best Beach in the U.S.” by TripAdvisor and is a former No. 1 “Best Beach in the U.S.”

St. Pete Beach is a barrier island at the southern end of Pinellas County 8.6 miles west of downtown St. Petersburg and less than 30 miles from downtown Tampa.

The HFF Hotel Team continues to be active in the St. Petersburg area resort market, having recently advised on the sales of The Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club and the Postcard Inn On The Beach.

Preston Reid

“The Tampa Bay region continues to be a magnet for hospitality investment, drawn by its vibrant, diverse economy and tremendous leisure and recreation amenities,” Peek said.

“This transaction made it abundantly clear that there is significant institutional interest in St. Pete Beach, and we are looking forward to seeing the next chapter for these two resorts and many others on this beach in the years to come,” Reid added.

Excel Hospitality Inc. offers accommodations on some of the best beaches directly on the Gulf of Mexico. The company manages several St. Petersburg Beach beachfront restaurants, eloquent banquets, conference centers, meeting rooms, beach bars and entertainment and beach weddings and receptions.

Wyatt Krapf

Gencom is a U.S.-based investment firm that owns, operates and develops prized real estate around the world, with an emphasis on luxury hotels, resorts and branded residential properties, and is also an active owner of and investor in hospitality operating platforms. .