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INDUS HOSPITALITY GROUP in Rochester, New York, has opened a new Microtel Hotel by Wyndham Hotels & Resorts in Warsaw, New York. The company, led by Jett Mehta, also broke ground on another Microtel in Farmington, New York. The 67-room hotel in Warsaw opened July 21 near Letchworth State Park. It features a meeting room, a fitness center and outside firepit. Rooms are singles, doubles and suites. Mehta and Tammy Murphy, Indus vice president, broke ground on the 60-room Farmington Microtel on July 24. Nearby attractions will include New York state's Finger Lakes region. Amenities will include meeting rooms, a fitness center and business center. "We look forward to welcoming travelers to the area's newest hotel, scheduled to open in June 2021," Murphy said.

The TownePlace Suites by Marriott Albuquerque Old Town in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is scheduled to open on Aug. 6. It is owned by IPMI Hotel Group and managed by Sun Capital Hotels led by Deepesh Kholwadwala as chief executive. The 92-suite hotel is near the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Albuquerque International Sunport and the city's downtown. Also nearby are Old Town Albuquerque, Sandia Peak Ski Area and the Sandia Peak Tramway. Hotel amenities include an indoor swimming pool with an outdoor patio and a board room.

The Staybridge Suites in Duluth, Georgia, is now open. The hotel, owned and operated by Duluth Capital Investments led by Sonial Patel as principal, is the first Staybridge Suites in the country using the brand's new "Next Generation 7.0" design that incorporates elements to protect against COVID-19. The 99-room, 5-story hotel has more open room in its public spaces for social distancing, which is strictly enforced. It features no contact check in / check out, as well as extensive disinfecting as part of InterContinental Hotel Group's "Clean Promise" program, including completely cleaning each suite with an electrostatic sprayer. Guests select their housekeeping schedule to further avoid contact.

PEACHTREE HOTEL GROUP and its affiliates, Peachtree PC Investors for capital markets and Peachtree Hospitality Management, made four changes at the senior leadership level recently. The promotions are intended to support the company's real estate investment platform and operation services, according to a statement. The Atlanta-based company, led by Jatin Desai and Mitul Patel as managing principals, promoted Greg Zabinski as executive vice president, capital markets for Peachtree PC Investors. Vivian Clarke is now senior vice president for people and culture. Steve MacKenzie was promoted to senior vice president over operations for Peachtree Hospitality Management, and Michael Ritz is now senior vice president for investments. "The success Peachtree is experiencing is creating significant opportunities for us in the talent space," said Greg Friedman, Peachtree's CEO. "These promotions support our strategic growth objectives, and we expect to have additional promotions and appointments as we further scale up our operations."

Kimberly Midkiff is now director of franchise development and the assurance and marketing program for hihotels by Hospitality International. Prior to that, she was the vice president of development for Sonesta and Red Lion Hotels Corp. Previously, Midkiff was director of sales and operations for JDH Developers, a hospitality real estate firm, according to company. Based in Lakemont, Georgia, she will be responsible for the growth of hihotels' Scottish Inns, Red Carpet Inn, Master Hosts Inns, Downtowner Inns and Passport Inn brands in the Southeast. According to the company, she will provide sales and marketing support and training to franchisees in the area as part of the Assurance & Marketing Program.

U.S. HOTEL PERFORMANCE increased in the final week of February from the previous week, according to STR. Occupancy saw a new high during the week. Occupancy was 64.2 percent for the week ending Feb. 25, up from 60.8 percent from the third week of February and 1.5 percent below the comparable week in 2019. ADR reached $156.51, up from $156.10 the week before and 22.2 percent over the same month in 2019. RevPAR stood at $100.43, up from $87.21 the previous week and 20.3 percent rise over 2019. The U.S. weekly occupancy level was the highest since the week ending Nov. 19, 2022, the STR data showed. Among the Top 25 Markets, Orlando saw the highest occupancy increase over 2019, up 6.2 percent to 86.9 percent, while Las Vegas reported the highest ADR, up 49.5 percent to $186.96 and RevPAR rose 51.8 percent to $148.61 over 2019.

EXTENDED-STAY HOTEL room supply in the 100 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the U.S. grew 2.5 percent in 2022 compared to 2021, its smallest increase in several years, according to a new report from The Highland Group. The survey, which researched supply, demand, revenues and new construction of extended-stay hotels, said the outcome in 2022 was about half the net supply gain reported in 2021. According to the report, the lengthening hotel development timeline, fewer construction starts, disenfranchising hotels that no longer meet brand standards, conversions to apartments and some municipalities acquiring extended-stay hotels for housing have resulted in the muted growth. While there was a sharp decline in reported extended-stay rooms under construction last year compared to 2021, construction starts increased 6 percent over the last 12 months. "However, they remain low compared to the pre-pandemic period, the report noted. RevPAR growth in 2022 strongly favored ADR as opposed to occupancy gains in 2021. "Consequently, more than 40 MSAs reported lower average occupancy in 2022 than during the previous year. However, only a dozen MSAs have not yet recovered RevPAR back to its nominal 2019 value compared to about half the MSAs last year," it showed.

ATLANTA-BASED BANYAN Investment Group, led by Rakesh Chauhan and Andy Chopra as managing partners, is rebranding as Satori Collective, an investment management firm focusing primarily on hotel property investment. Its subsidiary Banyan Tree Management also has become Aperture Hotels. Satori and Aperture will work independently of one another. The awakening Satori focuses on investment into select-service, upper select-service extended-stay and lifestyle hotel properties, according to the company. It concentrates on investment in growth corridors located in top MSAs across the U.S. which have established hotel demand generators such as tourism, corporate group travel, state capitals, conference universities, healthcare, heavy manufacturing and military. "Satori is a Buddhist term meaning 'awakening and deep understanding,' which is how our team approaches commercial real estate investment," Chopra said. "With more than 140 years of combined investment experience in virtually all markets and segments, our team has an unparalleled understanding of both the environment and the marketplace. We realized that our true, core business is real estate investment, so we have renewed and doubled our focus on raising and deploying capital in pursuit of consistent, risk adjusted returns while allowing our former management platform to stand on its own and pursue additional third-party management business opportunities."

STONEHILL, A COMMERCIAL real estate direct lender and Peachtree Group affiliate, is now ranked as the 8th largest U.S. commercial real estate hotel lender by the Mortgage Bankers Association's 2022 loan originations rankings, a two-spot increase from its 2021 ranking. Stonehill deployed $1.2 billion in real estate investment, with $813 million for hotels in 2022, the company said in a statement. Meanwhile, Stonehill is also ranked as the 16th largest U.S. commercial real estate retail lender by MBA, having deployed $163 million in 2022, the statement added. "Our performance is a testament to our commitment to understanding our sponsors' business plans and accomplishing the transactions by having stable capital despite market turbulence," said Mat Crosswy, Stonehill's president and managing principal. Stonehill expanded its commercial lending business to originate and make investments across all real estate sectors by forming Stonehill CRE in 2022. This CRE group focuses on heavy transitional assets and sectors of the credit market that are traditionally undersupplied, the statement further said.

OFFICIALS OF THE "She Has a Deal" annual hotel investment pitch contest announced the five teams selected to advance to the final round of SHaDPitch 2023. The competition allows early career women to compete for the prize of $50,000 of equity in SHaD's Prosperity Fund I, following the conclusion of a virtual, preliminary round of pitching, SHaD said in a statement. SHaD 2023 will be held at the new Marriott Headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland, on April 27 to 28. According to the statement, the goal of SHaD is to increase the number of women owning and developing hotels. It provides participants with the ability to source, analyse, raise capital and close hotel real estate investment deals. During the preliminary judging round, eight teams comprising 15 participants pitched their hotel investment acquisition or development projects live on Zoom to a judging panel of hotel business executives, entrepreneurs, and investors. The judges evaluated and selected the following five teams: Sydney Young and Rachel Nicholson with SpartanStone, graduates of Michigan State University, pitching a La Quinta Inn & Suites in Lewisville, Texas. Chandler Williamson with Chanders Core Commitment, graduate of North Carolina Central University, pitching a Hilton Garden Inn in Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina. Isabella Suffredini, Veronica Lewis and Alexandra Neoman with CROWN, graduates of Cornell University, pitching a TownePlace Suites in Houston, Texas. Makenna Price with Hookipa Hospitality, graduate of Washington State University, pitching a Fairfield Inn & Suites in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida Allison Busch and Hannah Takekawa with AH Hospitality, graduates of San Diego State University, pitching a Staybridge Suites in Austin, Texas "Every year, I grow more encouraged that we are making an impact," said Tracy Prigmore, founder of SHaD. "These are brilliant women who benefit from the education and programming that SHaD provides, and their hotel investment acumen has grown by leap

U.S. HOTEL PERFORMANCE was up in the first week of December compared to the week before, according to STR. However, occupancy was down during the week when compared to 2019. Occupancy was 55.4 percent for the week ending Dec. 3, up from 50.4 percent the week before and decreased 7.7 percent from 2019. ADR was $141.71 during the week, up from $135.49 the week before and up 10.2 percent from three years ago. RevPAR reached $78.50 during the week, increased from $68.27 the week before and up 1.7 percent from 2019. Among STR's top 25 markets, New Orleans reported the only occupancy increase, up 1.1 percent to 67.2 percent, over 2019.

C.J. Chapman is the new general counsel of Denver-based hotel operator and developer Stonebridge Cos. Chapman, who has nearly two decades of experience, will provide in-house legal advice for Stonebridge and also oversee the firm's risk management group, a statement said. A Denver native, Chapman also will become a shareholder in Stonebridge, according to the company. Previously, he served as general counsel to Elevation Capital, a venture fund based in Vancouver, Canada. "I am excited to have C.J. join our team. His breadth of experience and knowledge is a welcomed addition to Stonebridge," said Tom Brinkman, president and chief operating officer of Stonebridge. "C.J.'s professionalism, broad experience in the commercial real estate sector and commitment to excellence is a perfect fit for the team and culture here at Stonebridge."

ATLANTA-BASED BANYAN Investment Group has completed the sale of the 112-room Holiday Inn Express & Suites Bluffton at Hilton Head Area in South Carolina, to Trishul Hospitality, the company said. The transaction, for an undisclosed amount, generated a 24 percent internal rate of return and a 3.3x equity multiple for Banyan. "We purchased the Bluffton Holiday Inn Express & Suites back in 2014 with the idea that this South Carolina coastal submarket was poised for long term growth. We were confident Bluffton would evolve into a tourist destination, aided by its proximity to several year-round destinations such as Hilton Head Island, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; and Charleston, South Carolina," said Samir Yajnik, principal and EVP of investments, Banyan Investment Group. "Our underwriting and research at that time proved to be correct given Beaufort has become the fastest growing town in Beaufort County, South Carolina, with its population having grown by more than 124 percent in the last decade.

U.S. HOTEL PERFORMANCE was up in the second week of December compared to the week before, according to STR. When compared to 2019, performance was higher during the week. Occupancy was 59.6 percent for the week ending Dec. 10, up from 55.4 percent the week before and a slight decrease of 1.2 percent from 2019. ADR was $144.79 during the week, increased from $141.71 the week before and up 15.4 percent from three years ago. RevPAR reached $86.29 during the week, up from $78.50 the week before and up 14 percent from 2019. Among STR's top 25 markets, Tampa reported the highest occupancy increase during the week, up 10.2 percent to 80.1 percent, over 2019. New York City achieved the highest occupancy level at 90.2 percent. New Orleans posted the highest ADR, increased 57.3 percent to $202.67, and RevPAR, up 63.8 percent to $136.92, over 2019.

THE BAIRD/STR Hotel Stock Index rose 2.7 percent in November according to STR. However, hotel stocks were relative underperformers during the month for the first time since June. The index jumped 15.8 percent in October. The index was down 5.5 percent year-to-date through the first 11 months of 2022. In November, the Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index fell behind both the S&P 500, up 5.4 percent and the MSCI US REIT Index, increased 5.6 percent. The hotel brand sub-index increased 3.7 percent from October to 9,804, while the Hotel REIT sub-index fell 0.2 percent.

NEXGEN HOTELS, LED by Chris Patel as president, acquired the 120-suite SpringHill Suites by Marriott Chicago Waukegan/Gurneein in Waukegan, Illinois. The purchase is part of the company's strategy in the market. The hotel is near to Naval Station Great Lakes, Six Flags Great America & Hurricane Harbor, Gurnee Mills Mall, Waukegan Municipal Beach and other shopping, dining and entertainment options, a statement said. "Acquiring the SpringHill Suites by Marriott strategically aligns our company's growth in the Waukegan area," Patel said. "Having an existing presence in the market with our TownePlace Suites by Marriott Chicago Waukegan/Gurnee, will help us collaborate between the hotels, and enhance our partnerships with other area businesses."

BWH HOTEL GROUP will offer cashless tipping to guests via eTip and Visa. The function will allow guests to express gratitude to hotel associates through pre-selected or custom tipping in the U.S. and Canada. The eTip process will be available at properties of the group, including Best Western Hotels & Resorts and SureStay Hotel Group hotels, the statement added. BWH said the new facility will empower guests to financially give to those who rely on tips as latest reports revealed that only 16 percent of U.S. customers carry cash. "We are committed to providing the best possible experience for our guests and bringing value to BWH hoteliers and their associates," said Michael Morton, BWH vice president for brand management. "We're excited to offer eTip digital tipping solution as a convenient way our valued guests can show appreciation to our dedicated hotel associates. We are equally excited to offer our associates a choice to receive their tips in real-time directly into their bank accounts. Innovation and caring are at the heart of our brand and we're proud to partner with eTip to innovate the tipping experience for guests and hoteliers alike."

GEORGIA HOTELIER NAVIN Patel has contracted with Hospitality Ventures Management Group to manage his 111-room boutique Darwin Hotel in Atlanta. HVMG oversaw the complete rebranding and renovation of the hotel. The four-story Darwin is in Atlanta's Old Fourth Ward and features eight individually themed suites and a lobby that displays a collection of local art. It is named after evolutionary biologist Charles Darwin and the themes include the Bar Room, featuring a full bar for entertaining; the Bunk Bed Room, with bunk beds and extra space for families and young adults; and the Audiophile Room, which includes a turntable and access to the hotel's vinyl music library. Navin Patel and his two sons, Shyam and Sagar, purchased the property in 2016. "We hope to showcase the best of what Atlanta has to offer," Navin Patel said. "This hotel is a love letter to our ever-changing city and pays homage to its history. Being in the heart of a large metropolitan city creates opportunities for artists, businesspeople, world travelers and people from all walks of life to all unite in our space."

U.S. HOTEL PERFORMANCE decreased in the third week of December compared to the week before, according to STR. However, performance metrics improved when compared to 2019 in part because of a favorable calendar shift. According to STR, the corresponding week in 2019 ended on 21 December, which brought performance down lower for that period. Occupancy was 54.5 percent for the week ending Dec. 17, down from 59.6 percent the week before and an increase of 9.2 percent from 2019. ADR was $135.08 during the week, dropped from $144.79 the week before and up 23.7 percent from three years ago. RevPAR reached $73.65 during the week, down from $86.29 the week before and up 35.1 percent from 2019.

THE WINDSOR HOTEL in Americus, Georgia, a boutique hotel owned by Edgewater Group LLC, has joined Choice Hotels International's Ascend Hotel Collection. The historical building recently underwent a multi-year renovation. Edgewater is led by founding partners Ketan Vora and Robert Brier. Originally built in 1892, the 53-room, the five-story Victorian-style Windsor features a tower and turret, balconies, and a three-story open atrium lobby, according to Choice. It occupies nearly an entire city block and was the site of numerous balls and celebrations. The Windsor closed in 1972 and underwent extensive renovations in 1991, 2010 and most recently in 2019. Nearby attractions are The Plains Depot, the Jimmy Carter Peanut of Plains statue, Civil War prison Andersonville National Historic Site and the Drummer Boy Civil War Museum. Former President Jimmy Carter and his wife spent the night at the hotel in 2002. Hotel amenities include a fitness center, two on-site restaurants and bars and a veranda.