LaSalle Hotel Properties Acquires Lansdowne Resort; Luxury Resort Includes Championship Golf Course, 296-room Conference Center & Spa.To download high-resolution, print-ready JPEG JPEG in full Joint Photographic Experts Group Standard computer file format for storing graphic images in a compressed form for general use. JPEG images are compressed using a mathematical algorithm. images, click on the thumbnail image above. WARNING: these images are very large (800K+) Click here for caption Business/Photo Editors NOTE TO MEDIA: Multimedia assets available A photo is available at URL URL in full Uniform Resource Locator Address of a resource on the Internet. The resource can be any type of file stored on a server, such as a Web page, a text file, a graphics file, or an application program. : http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/photo.cgi?pw.061703/bb8 BETHESDA, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 17, 2003 LaSalle Hotel Properties (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :LHO LHO Lee Harvey Oswald LHO Laughing Head Off LHO Left Hand Opponent (bridge game) LHO Local Housing Organisation (UK) LHO Large Herd Operators (Elora, ON, Canada) ) today announced it has acquired Lansdowne Resort for $115.8 million. The AAA AAA: see American Automobile Association. (Triple A) A common single-cell battery used in a myriad of electronic devices of all variety. Like its double A (AA) cousin, it provides 1.5 volts of DC power. When used in series, the voltage is multiplied. Four-Diamond resort, located on 207 acres in Lansdowne, Virginia along the Potomac River, currently features 296 guest rooms and suites, an 18-hole championship golf course designed by award-winning architect Robert Trent Jones See: American TV writer Trent Jones Robert Trent Jones, Sr. (June 20, 1906 – June 14, 2000) was a golf course architect who designed (or re-designed) about 500 golf courses in at least 40 US states and 35 other countries all around the world. , Jr. and 45,000 square feet of conference center meeting and pre-function space. A second 18-hole championship golf course, designed by Greg Norman, and a 30,000 to 35,000 square foot clubhouse are currently under development and are scheduled for completion by mid-2005. Excluding the approximately $12.2 million cost of this property under development and $0.8 million related to existing membership deposits, the purchase price of the hotel and existing golf course was $102.8 million. This purchase price is approximately 10.0 - 10.5 times historical property level EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) A metric used to show a company's profitability, but not its cash flow. EBITDA became popular in the 1980s to show the potential profitability of leveraged buyouts, but has become . As part of the acquisition, the Company assumed outstanding debt of $62.8 million and funded the balance of the purchase price with $44.7 million from its 1031-escrow and $8.3 million from its corporate credit facility. As a result of this new investment, the Company has successfully redeployed the required proceeds from the sale of the New Orleans Grande Hotel through an Internal Revenue Code The Internal Revenue Code is the body of law that codifies all federal tax laws, including income, estate, gift, excise, alcohol, tobacco, and employment taxes. These laws constitute title 26 of the U.S. Code (26 U.S.C.A. § 1 et seq. Section 1031 like-kind exchange ("1031-Exchange"). "We are extremely excited to acquire this unique luxury resort," said Jon Bortz, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of LaSalle Hotel Properties. "Lansdowne Resort is strategically located within an easy drive of several large metropolitan areas, including Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . Additionally, the resort is located within Loudoun County, Virginia Loudoun County (pronounced "LOUD-un"; IPA: ['laʊdn̩]) is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States, and is part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. , one of the fastest growing counties in the nation, and within a short fifteen-minute drive of Dulles International Airport. Commercial development along and to the west of the Dulles Corridor, as well as a housing boom in Loudoun County, provides an opportunity for significant long-term growth in performance at the resort." Lansdowne Resort is located in Lansdowne, Virginia in the Potomac River Valley, 30 miles west of Washington, D.C. and less than 160 miles from Richmond, Baltimore and Philadelphia. In addition, the resort is situated just 12 miles from Dulles International Airport, providing easy accessibility for regional, domestic and international visitors. The resort is part of the Lansdowne Master Development, a 2,267-acre rapidly expanding residential and commercial master-planned development that is anticipated to include more than 2,100 upscale and luxury homes, more than 2 million square feet of commercial space, the 50-acre Lansdowne Hospital/Healthcare Campus, and Leisure World, a 91-acre age restricted 2,278 unit high-rise condominium development. The 281-acre Janelin Technology Park, located one-half mile from the Resort, includes the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Howard Hughes Medical Institute, (HHMI), nonprofit medical research organization founded in 1953 by Howard Hughes and largly funded from proceeds of the 1984–85 sale of Hughes Aircraft. Headquartered in Chevy Chase, Md. , a $500 million development featuring 750,000 square feet of biomedical research facilities. The first phase of this internationally important research center recently commenced construction. The conference center portion of the resort encompasses 25 separate meeting rooms, including the 9,500 square foot Lansdowne Ballroom, a 120-seat tiered amphitheater and an outdoor pavilion. Representing over 30,000 square feet of dedicated meeting space and 15,000 square feet of pre-function space, the state-of-the-art conference center has wireless and T-1 high speed internet access. Lansdowne Resort is an International Association of Conference Centers ("IACC IACC International Association of Conference Centers IACC Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (DHSS) IACC International Anti-Corruption Conference IACC International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition ") certified lodging facility. This important designation identifies the resort as a premier meeting facility, designed specifically for the needs of groups, with the conference center located in a separate, private wing from the remainder of the resort. Dining facilities at the resort include four distinct outlets, providing meeting and leisure guests with a variety of options. Riverside Hearth, with 305 seats, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner and operates as the primary conference dining room. Lansdowne Grill, an upscale 120-seat lounge and steakhouse features gourmet foods and wines for lunch and dinner. Stonewall's Tavern, a 97-seat casual-style pub, offers lunch, dinner and late night dining, as well as billiards billiards, any one of a number of games played with a tapered, leather-tipped stick called a cue and various numbers of balls on a rectangular, cloth-covered slate table with raised and cushioned edges. , shuffleboard shuffleboard, sport in which players use cue sticks to push disks onto a scoring diagram at either end of a concrete or terrazzo court. The court is 52 ft (15.85 m) long and 6 ft (1.83 m) wide. The bases of the triangular scoring diagrams are parallel to and 8 ft (2. , darts and big-screen televisions. Fairway's Deli and Bar provides light fare in a poolside environment, as well as acting as the halfway house halfway house /half·way house/ (haf´wa hous) a residence for patients (e.g., mental patients, drug addicts, alcoholics) who do not require hospitalization but who need an intermediate degree of care until they can return to the community. for golf course patrons. In addition to the existing golf course, recreational amenities include separate indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a health club, the Spa at Lansdowne, three lighted tennis courts, racquetball racquetball, sport played indoors by two or four players, combining elements of court handball and such racket games as squash racquets. It is played on a standard handball court 40 ft (12.2 m) long, 20 ft (6. , volleyball, basketball, aerobics, and walking and jogging trails. Built in 1991, and rated AAA Four-Diamond every year since, Lansdowne Resort has won numerous awards, including the Award of Excellence from Corporate and Incentive Travel Magazine, the prestigious Gold Key Award from Meetings and Conventions Magazine, and the Pinnacle Award from Successful Meetings Magazine. The acquisition of Lansdowne Resort also includes an additional 349 acres of land along the Potomac River adjacent to the existing resort. A new 18-hole championship golf course designed by world-renowned golfer Greg Norman is under development on this land. Grading and clearing for the new Norman Course have commenced, with construction of the new course and clubhouse expected to be completed by mid-2005. Plans also include a nine-hole executive course that has also been designed by Greg Norman. An additional 240,000 square feet of entitled building rights for future undefined expansion of the resort were also part of the acquisition and included in the purchase price. The new 18-hole championship Norman Course will be combined with the existing Robert Trent Jones, Jr. Course to form the Lansdowne Resort and Golf Club (the "Club"). Non-equity memberships to the semi-private Club are already being sold, with over 100 sold to-date of the 800 individual/family and corporate memberships in total that are being offered. Lansdowne Resort will continue to control all aspects of the utilization of the courses, including use by resort guests and for group outings and will receive all membership initiation fees, dues, cart charges and all other revenues associated with the two courses. The Company expects to invest approximately $22.0 million to complete the Norman Course and to build the new clubhouse, a new double-sided driving range and adjacent practice facilities and two new holes on the Robert Trent Jones, Jr. Course that will replace two existing holes that will serve as the location for the new driving range facilities. The clubhouse is expected to include men's and women's locker rooms, the golf pro shop, a junior ballroom, and dining facilities, including a casual restaurant and bar. The Company also anticipates investing approximately $4.0 million over the next 18 months in the resort to further enhance the guest rooms, suites and public areas. "Lansdowne Resort has significant upside potential Upside potential The amount by which analysts or investors expect the price of a security may increase. upside potential The potential price or gain that may be expected in a security or in a security average, generally stated as the dollar ," noted Mr. Bortz. "The popularity of the resort is already strong, as evidenced by the many Fortune-500 corporations and professional firms that hold high-end meetings at the resort. And the completion of the Greg Norman Course and clubhouse will further enhance Lansdowne's reputation as a premier destination resort for both the corporate and leisure segments. In addition, we anticipate recoupment of a majority of the development costs of the Norman Course and clubhouse through the sale of memberships in the Lansdowne Resort and Golf Club, significantly enhancing the returns from the resort overall." Lansdowne Resort will be managed by Benchmark Hospitality, which has operated the resort since it opened in 1991. Benchmark is a national operator of premier luxury and upscale conference centers and resorts, including The Turtle Bay Resort The Turtle Bay Resort is a luxury resort located in Kahuku, Hawaii. The hotel is the only major hotel on the North Shore of Oahu, and is a 50 minute drive from Honolulu. The hotel is situated on 880 acres of land at Turtle Bay, and features 375 rooms, 26 suites, and 42 Beach (Oahu, Hawaii), Scottsdale Conference Resort (Scottsdale, Arizona) and the Cheyenne Mountain Resort (Colorado Springs, Colorado The City of Colorado Springs is the second most populous city (after Denver) in the state of Colorado and the 48th most populous city in the United States.[4] The city is the county seat of El Paso County. ). "Benchmark has an extraordinary understanding of how to develop and operate high-end, unique conference center resorts," continued Mr. Bortz. "Their expertise and success operating Lansdowne over the last twelve years, coupled with their vision of the potential of this property, gave us great confidence in selecting them as the operator to maximize the performance of the resort." The exclusive co-brokers for the transaction, together representing the seller's interests, were HREC HREC Hospitality Real Estate Counselors HREC Health Record HREC Haringey Race Equality Council (UK local government) HREC Hunt Real Estate Corporation Investment Advisors and The Greenwich Group International. HREC Investment Advisors is the real estate brokerage and investment banking arm of Hospitality Real Estate Counselors ("HREC"), one of the nation's leading advisors to the lodging industry. Based in Denver, Colorado, HREC maintains an international practice specializing in hotel brokerage, debt financing Debt Financing When a firm raises money for working capital or capital expenditures by selling bonds, bills, or notes to individual and/or institutional investors. In return for lending the money, the individuals or institutions become creditors and receive a promise to repay , equity placements, consulting and asset management. For additional information, visit HREC's website at www.hrec.com. Headquartered in New York, The Greenwich Group International is a world leader in real estate investment banking, with offices in eight cities on four continents. The Greenwich Group's Hotel Group, headed by Neil Teplica, is active in capitalizations, investment sales and fund raising. For additional information, visit The Greenwich Group's website at www.greenwichgrp.com. Benchmark Hospitality is an international hospitality management company based in The Woodlands, Texas. Benchmark operates luxury resorts, hotels, spas, golf clubs, and conference centers throughout the United States, Canada and Japan. For locations of Benchmark Hospitality properties and for additional information, visit Benchmark's website at www.benchmarkhospitality.com. LaSalle Hotel Properties is a leading multi-tenant, multi-operator real estate investment trust ("REIT REIT See: Real Estate Investment Trust REIT See real estate investment trust (REIT). "), which owns 17 upscale and luxury full-service hotels, totaling approximately 5,600 guest rooms in 13 markets in 11 states and the District of Columbia District of Columbia, federal district (2000 pop. 572,059, a 5.7% decrease in population since the 1990 census), 69 sq mi (179 sq km), on the east bank of the Potomac River, coextensive with the city of Washington, D.C. (the capital of the United States). . LaSalle Hotel Properties focuses on investing in upscale and luxury full-service hotels located in urban, resort and convention markets. The Company seeks to grow through strategic relationships with premier internationally recognized hotel operating companies including Marriott International, Inc., Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., Crestline Hotels & Resorts, Inc., Radisson Hotels International, Inc., Outrigger outrigger, canoe-type vessel with a wood or bamboo float attached to the side of the craft and extending out over the water. The term outrigger also refers to the float itself. Lodging Services, Noble House Hotels & Resorts, Interstate Hotels Corporation, Benchmark Hospitality, and the Kimpton Hotel & Restaurant Group, LLC (Logical Link Control) See "LANs" under data link protocol. LLC - Logical Link Control . Certain matters discussed in this press release may be deemed to be forward looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA) implemented several significant substantive changes affecting certain cases brought under the federal securities laws, including changes related to pleading, discovery, liability, class representation and awards fees and of 1995. Although LaSalle Hotel Properties believes the expectations reflected in such forward looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be attained. Certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations are listed in the Company's Form 10-K Form 10-K A report required by the SEC from exchange-listed companies that provides for annual disclosure of certain financial information. Form 10-K See 10-K. for the year ended December 31, 2002 and subsequent SEC reports and filings. LaSalle Hotel Properties assumes no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking statements that become untrue because of subsequent events. Additional Contacts: Hans Weger, Chief Financial Officer, LaSalle Hotel Properties - 301/941-1516 For additional information or to receive press releases via e-mail, please visit our website at www.lasallehotels.com Note: A photo is available at URL: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/photo.cgi?pw.061703/bb8 |
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