Atlas in the news

CoStar 01/24/19 SeaWorld Favors Roller Coasters Over Hotels to Boost Attendance By Lou Hirsh https://product.costar.com/home/news/shared/1589481510 For SeaWorld, adding marine-themed roller coasters is a higher priority than building on-site hotels to lure visitors to its parks across the country. New and upcoming coasters are helping SeaWorld rebound from deep visitor and revenue declines after the 2013 documentary “Blackfish” showed the harm on whales in captivity at the chain. At the same time, the company moves away from adding on-site hotels as part of its recovery formula after the recent cancellation of one at its San Diego location. Following last year’s opening of its attendance-boosting Electric Eel roller coaster, SeaWorld San Diego this May plans to open Tidal Twister, billed as a “dueling coaster” taking riders on a twisting, banking ride at 30 miles an hour with zero-gravity rolls. In 2020, it plans to debut the shark-themed Mako coaster, described as the “tallest, fastest and longest dive coaster in California” and the state’s only floorless dive coaster, in which riders will dangle as the coaster climbs to 153 feet. The coaster comes as Orlando, Florida-based SeaWorld Entertainment Inc., once famous for its orca mascot Shamu, abandoned a proposed hotel project on the…

HotelNewsNow 01/25/19 California Hotel Sales Could Drop Over Bid-ask Gap As the price per key hit a record in 2018 California hotel sales, the number of individual sales dropped year over year, perhaps showing a widening gap in buyer and seller expectations. By Bryan Wroten http://www.hotelnewsnow.com/articles/292456/California-hotel-sales-could-drop-over-bid-ask-gap REPORT FROM THE U.S.—In a possible indication of what’s to come, hotel transactions in the state set a new record last year in price per room, while the number of individual sales dropped significantly. It’s a tale of two sets of numbers, said Alan Reay, president of Atlas Hospitality Group, author of the California Hotel Sales Survey Year-end 2018. Last year’s transactions set a new price-per-key record of more than $121,000, he said, a 14% increase over 2017 and a 77% increase over the past five years. However, the number of individual sales dropped 24% year over year in 2018, falling from 369 in 2017 to 280 in 2018. It’s the second-largest percentage decline in sales since 2008 to 2009, at the beginning of the meltdown, he said. Reay said the decline could be an indicator of declining actual sales in California, and buyer and seller expectations falling out of alignment. The number of…

Bloomberg 01/22/19 Sunset Strip Scrubs Its Seedy Rock Past with $450 Million Hotel By Patrick Clark https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-22/sunset-strip-scrubs-its-seedy-rock-past-with-450-million-hotel For decades, the Sunset Strip was known for its rock clubs and celebrity hot spots. Now, the once-gritty stretch of boulevard is becoming better known for its luxury hotels. Real estate developers AECOM Capital and Combined Properties Inc. provided a fresh glimpse of the future of the section of Sunset Boulevard that runs through West Hollywood, California, by unveiling new details of a $450 million hotel-and-condo project they’re building where the House of Blues once stood. Called the Pendry West Hollywood, the project has 149 guest rooms, 40 branded residences and a small music venue that nods to the property’s history. “People in finance and tech and real estate, the traditional businesses that stay with us and stay at luxury hotels, we think we’ll pull them to West Hollywood,” said Michael Fuerstman, who co-founded operator Pendry Hotels with his father, Alan. “We think it’s a big opportunity.” He isn’t the only one. The Pendry is slated to open next year, when it will join a crowd of newly built or freshly renovated hotels along Sunset Boulevard. They include the conversion of an existing…

HotelNewsNow 01/18/19 California Development Could Taper Amid Rising Costs The number of new hotels opening in California is expected to remain steady for the next few years, but increasing costs in construction and labor, among other challenges, will likely lead to an eventual slowdown, according to a survey. By Bryan Wroten http://www.hotelnewsnow.com/Articles/292370/California-development-could-taper-amid-rising-costs   REPORT FROM THE U.S.—The number of new hotel openings in 2018 in California was down compared to the record-high openings in 2017, but should rebound in 2019 and potentially 2020, a survey by Atlas Hospitality Group shows. The 2018 California Hotel Development Survey by Atlas Hospitality Group reports 52 hotels opened in California last year, down 21% from 66 in 2017. The number of new rooms opened also decreased, falling 39% from 10,793 in 2017 to 6,592 in 2018. The slowdown in openings in 2018 was expected, and is in no way an indicator that people are pulling back from developing in California, said Alan Reay, president of Atlas Hospitality Group. Looking at projects under development in the state now indicates 2019 and 2020 would be closer in pace to 2017, he said. There are currently 203 hotels with 29,114 rooms under construction, a 37% increase in…

The Orange County Register 01/15/19 Does Orange County Need 80 More Hotels? By Jonathan Lansner https://www.ocregister.com/2019/01/15/does-orange-county-need-80-more-hotels/ Orange County’s lodging industry has plans to add 80 more hotels after nine opened the past two years. The annual hotel construction report from Atlas Hospitality shows three hotels opened in 2018 in Orange County, half of the six in 2017. Last year’s openings had 445 rooms vs. 960 in ’17 — a drop of 54 percent. That decline seems to be a fast-growth industry taking a breather than any actual slowdown. Hotels under construction at year-end were 14 hotels vs. eight in ’17 — a gain of 75 percent. That lodging will hold 3,128 rooms vs. 1,657 a year earlier — a rise of 89 percent. Orange County developers are in planning stages for an additional 66 hotels vs. 57 a year earlier — a rise of 16 percent. That lodging will hold 10,344 rooms vs. 11,184 a year earlier — a fall of 8 percent. PS: Orange County represented 6 percent of hotels opened statewide last year vs. 9 percent in ’17 and 6 percent of lodging being built or planned. PPS: The average number of rooms per hotels recently built, under…

The Press-Enterprise 01/15/19 Does Riverside County Need 89 More Hotels? By Jonathan Lansner https://www.pe.com/2019/01/15/does-riverside-county-need-89-more-hotels/ Riverside County’s lodging industry has plans to add 89 more hotels after nine opened the past two years. The annual hotel construction report from Atlas Hospitality shows 3 hotels opened in 2018 in Riverside County, half of the six in 2017. Last year’s openings had 447 rooms vs. 1,236 in ’17 — a drop of 64 percent. That decline seems to be a fast-growth industry taking a breather than any actual slowdown. The short run looks cool: 14 hotels were under construction at year-end vs. 13 in ’17. That lodging will hold 1,746 rooms vs. 1,909 a year earlier — a fall of 9 percent. But Riverside County’s developers are in planning stages for an additional 75 hotels vs. 53 a year earlier — a rise of 42 percent. That lodging will hold 11,837 rooms vs. 9,422 a year earlier — a rise of 26 percent. PS: Riverside County represented 6 percent of hotels opened statewide last year vs. 9 percent in ’17 and 7 percent of lodging being built or planned. PPS: The average number of rooms per hotels recently built, under construction or planned…

Daily Bulletin 01/15/19 Does San Bernardino County Need 45 More Hotels? By Jonathan Lansner https://www.dailybulletin.com/2019/01/15/does-san-bernardino-county-need-45-more-hotels/ San Bernardino County’s lodging industry has plans to add 45 more hotels after 5 opened last year. The annual hotel construction report from Atlas Hospitality shows 5 hotels opened in 2018 in San Bernardino County after having no openings in 2017. Last year’s openings had 445 rooms. Under construction were seven hotels at year-end vs. six in 2017. That new lodging will hold 656 rooms vs. 611 a year earlier — a rise of 7 percent. San Bernardino County’s developers are also in planning stages for an additional 38 hotels vs. 32 a year earlier — a rise of 19 percent. That lodging will hold 3,705 rooms vs. 2,803 a year earlier — a rise of 32 percent. PS: San Bernardino County represented 10 percent of hotels opened statewide last year vs. 4 percent of lodging being built or planned. PPS: The average number of rooms per hotels recently built, under construction or planned is 96 vs. 141 statewide.

Los Angeles Daily News 01/15/19 Does Los Angeles County Need 299 More Hotels? Hotels under construction at year-end were 45 hotels vs. 32 in ’17 — a gain of 41 percent. Los Angeles County’s developers are in planning stages for an additional 254 hotels vs. 217 a year earlier — a rise of 17 percent. By Jonathan Lansner https://www.dailynews.com/2019/01/15/does-los-angeles-county-need-299-more-hotels/ Los Angeles County’s lodging industry has plans to add 299 more hotels after 34 opened the past two years. The annual hotel construction report from Atlas Hospitality shows 11 hotels opened in 2018 in Los Angeles County vs. 23 in 2017 — down 52 percent. Last year’s openings had 1,526 rooms vs. 4,309 in ’17 — a drop of 65 percent. That decline seems to be a fast-growth industry taking a breather than any actual slowdown. Hotels under construction at year-end were 45 hotels vs. 32 in ’17 — a gain of 41 percent. That lodging will hold 6,727 rooms vs. 5,327 a year earlier — a rise of 26 percent. Los Angeles County’s developers are in planning stages for an additional 254 hotels vs. 217 a year earlier — a rise of 17 percent. That lodging will hold 39,974 rooms…

Napa Valley Register 01/15/19 NapaStat | 23: That’s the Number of Hotels Opened in NorCal in 2018 By Jennifer Huffman https://napavalleyregister.com/business/napastat-that-s-the-number-of-hotels-opened-in-norcal/article_2ec404be-d684-5e3c-954e-586d53408a19.htm   23: The number of hotels opened in Northern California in 2018. Two are in Napa County: the Francis House in Calistoga and the Vista Collina Resort in south Napa. Source: Atlas Hospitality Group

The Orange County Register 01/14/19 Does Southern California Need 513 More Hotels By Jonathan Lansner https://www.ocregister.com/2019/01/14/does-southern-california-need-513-more-hotels/ Southern California’s lodging business continues to grow with 513 more hotels in the works after 57 others opened over the past two years. The annual hotel construction report from Atlas Hospitality shows 22 hotels opened in 2018 in the four counties covered by the Southern California News Group. That’s down from 35 in 2017 — a 37 percent dip. Last year’s openings had 2,863 rooms vs. 6,505 in ’17 — a drop of 56 percent. That decline may be a fast-growth industry taking a breather rather than an actual slowdown. Atlas reported hotels under construction at year-end in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties stood at 80 vs. 59 in ’17 — a gain of 36 percent. That lodgings will hold 12,257 rooms vs. 9,504 a year earlier — a rise of 29 percent. Plus, Southern California developers are in the planning stages for another 433 hotels vs. 359 a year earlier — a rise of 21 percent. The new hotels will hold 65,860 rooms vs. 56,923 a year earlier — a rise of 16 percent. PS: Southern California represented 42 percent…

San Francisco Chronicle 01/14/19 Hurdles Remain as Historic Hearst Building in SF Seeks Hotel Conversion By Roland Li https://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/Hurdles-remain-as-historic-Hearst-Building-in-SF-13529589.php   A years-long effort to convert the historic Hearst Building into a hotel in downtown San Francisco faces opposition from neighbors and design challenges related to existing long-term leases. The 1909 building at 5 Third St. was once home of the San Francisco Examiner and currently includes offices and retail shops. In 1938, famed architect Julia Morgan redesigned the building’s entrance, lobby and roof. Property owner Hearst Real Estate worked with developer JMA Ventures to propose a high-end hotel conversion with 170 rooms in 2016. Hearst Corp. owns both Hearst Real Estate and The Chronicle… …San Francisco has a hotel shortage, thanks to strong tourism and business travel, and it’s difficult to get new hotels approved, said Alan Reay, president of Atlas Hospitality Group, an Irvine hotel brokerage. The $551 million Moscone Center expansion, which finished this month, is expected to increase hotel demand even more this year. “I think the city is definitely underserved,” Reay said. “It’s such a long gestation period in San Francisco to get anything through, approved and finally constructed.” Only one hotel opened last year in…

The San Diego Union-Tribune 01/09/19 Largest Hotel to Open in California Last Year Was in San Diego By Lori Weisberg https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/tourism/sd-fi-hotel-development-california-20190109-story.html   Even as hotel development in Southern California reached a new high last year, with more than 16,000 rooms under construction, the outlook for the future is not nearly as bullish as in years past. In all, some 112 hotels accounting for 16,700 rooms were in various stages of construction by the end of 2018 — a 28 percent increase over 2017, according to new data released Tuesday by Orange County-based Atlas Hospitality Group. While the number of hotel rooms being built in San Diego County — 2,458 — was down slightly compared to 2017, the growth in construction activity for Los Angeles and Orange counties was far more robust. San Diego, however, did have the largest hotel to open in the state last year — the 400-room InterContinental. In Los Angeles, more than 6,700 rooms were under construction — an increase of 26 percent — while in Orange County, the number of rooms under construction — 3,128 — surged nearly 90 percent. Most of the Orange County hotels are in Anaheim, led by the 613-room Westin Anaheim Resort….