Suburban Westin deal closes

The Westin Westminster has new owners.

Sage Hospitality LLC and Amstar Group LLC bought the 369-room hotel Thursday from Westminster-based Indland Pacific Cos. The companies declined to reveal the purchase price.

"It's a great asset. We're going to retain the Westin flag, and we'll probably be investing $4 million in interior finishes in the guest rooms and meeting space," said Doug Wiley, executive director of Amstar Group.

Specifically, the new owners will replace the bedding, carpet and fixtures in all the guest rooms, and replace tables, chairs and small fixtures in the 30,000 square feet of meeting space.

Sage Hospitality contacted Amstar eight months ago about the joint venture to purchase the Westminster Westin, Wiley said, one of several projects in which Sage and Amstar have invested.

In 1997, they teamed up to redevelop the former San Diego Trust & Savings Bank in downtown San Diego into a 224-room Courtyard by Marriott for $23.8 million.

Before that, they converted a Holiday Inn in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., into a 280-room, full-service Doubletree Hotel.

It's still not known how what will become of Inland Pacific's planned spa and condominium project adjacent to the Westin that was delayed earlier this year by a lack of financing.

Inland Pacific owner Tim O'Bryne could not be reached for comment.

Starwood spokeswoman Susan Stiff said the project is not dead and more details are to come.

Plans called for a $48 million condominium development, called Ananda, that was supposed to open in the summer of 2007, but it never broke ground. The plans included 60 loft-style condos, ranging in price from $200,000 to $1 million.

A separate project included a 17,000-square-foot Rocky Mountain Chopra Center & Spa -- a spa created by Deepak Chopra, who's known worldwide for promoting mind-body wellness -- on the second floor of the Ananda building.

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source: bizjournals.com