Sonnenblick Goldman arranges $117m hotel sale.

NEW YORK, NY: Sonnenblick Goldman, serving as the exclusive advisor to a joint venture between Westbrook Partners, Walton Street Capital and Lodging Capital Partners, has arranged the $117.5 million sale of the fee-simple interest in the Conrad Chicago Hotel to DiamondRock Hospitality. The hotel is located on prestigious North Michigan Avenue in the heart of Chicago's Magnificent Mile.

The 17-story hotel, renowned for its luxurious furnishings, outstanding location and its high-quality service, opened in 2001 under the Le Meridien flag. Current ownership acquired the hotel in 2005 and implemented a $5 million capital improvement plan that upgraded the asset to five-diamond quality. Upon completion of this investment, ownership retained Conrad Hotels as manger, which is one of Hilton Hotel's premier luxury brands.

"The combination of the asset quality, ideal location, strong Chicago market fundamentals and the affiliation with the internationally-recognized Conrad brand rendered this a unique opportunity for the buyer to acquire one of Chicago's best hotels," said Mark J. Gordon, managing director and principal of Sonnenblick Goldman and head of the firm's International Lodging & Leisure Group. "The combination of these qualities resulted in significant interest from the international hotel community." The hotel contains 311 guestrooms--including 33 oversized suites--featuring Pratesi bed linens, L'Occitane bath products, iPod docking stations, Bose 3-2-1 Hi-Fi entertainment systems, 42-inch Plasma screen televisions and wireless internet. The property also features three food and beverage venues, including The Terrace at Conrad, and more than 12,000 square feet of meeting space.

"The property's location within Chicago's central business district and proximity to 'The Loop,' River North and North Michigan Avenue districts, successfully positions the hotel among competing upper-scale and luxury hotels," commented Svetlin Ganchev, vice president of Sonnenblick Goldman.