SAN DIEGO May 9, 2002 A long delayed downtown hotel project adjacent to the San Diego Padres' proposed new Ballpark has received $104 million in construction financing arranged by Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, one of the nation's leading commercial mortgage banking firms.
Construction will resume later this month on the 512-room hotel, which will fly the Omni flag and include 37 luxury condominiums. The 32-story four-star hotel, which will sit directly across Harbor Drive from the new Ballpark, is scheduled to open in two years in conjunction with the new home of the San Diego Padres.
A team of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler producers that included Timothy D. Wright, senior managing director of the firm's San Diego office, Scott F. McMullin, senior managing director of the Los Angeles office, and Mark Gibson, executive managing director in the company's Dallas office, arranged the adjustable-rate, 48-month loan on behalf of San Diego-based JMI Realty, the project's developer.
A trio of lenders that includes Bank One NA, Westdeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale (WestLB) and San Diego Bank, provided funding.
The Sept. 11 attacks exacerbated what was already a very difficult financing market for hospitality development of any type, Wright said. The JMI transaction is the largest of just a handful of hotel loans to close in the U.S. since last fall. Since securing a commitment for this project more than a year ago, and have had to work through other delays as well, particularly the temporary suspension of construction of the adjacent Ballpark.
Holliday Fenoglio Fowler's ability to draw on a depth of experience in hospitality finance was crucial in bringing lenders to the table that could accommodate the project's requirements, he said.
We were looking for lenders whose underwriting and deal criteria most closely matched the characteristics of this development, McMullin said. That meant calling on strong relationships within the lending community -- both locally and internationally -- to pull the financing package together.
Bank One, NA, is the nation's sixth largest holding company, and has assets valued at more than $600 billion. WestLB is Germany's third-largest bank, with more than $400 billion in assets and representation in 35 countries around the world. San Diego National Bank, now in its 20th year of operation, has 16 branches throughout San Diego County and has been a strong supporter of local businesses and development efforts.
The new curvilinear glass tower addition to San Diego's skyline will overlook San Diego Bay and provide direct access to the Ballpark via a pedestrian bridge extending from the hotel's fourth floor above Seventh Avenue. The top 11 floors are being privately developed as The Metropolitan, which will comprise 37 luxury condominiums offered for sale. The hotel also will include a six-story banquet and convention wing adjoining the main tower, and will offer state-of-the-art conference and ballroom facilities along with a 13,000-square-foot rooftop terrace and swimming pool.
Holliday Fenoglio Fowler is one of the country's largest capital intermediaries for commercial real estate. 2001 was a record-breaking year for the firm, with more than $12.2 billion in business volume. Since 1998, the national firm's debt, equity/structured finance and investment sales transactions have totaled more than $47.7 billion.
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