AREA Property Partners Joint Venture Purchases Three Hyatt Hotels in Chicago

NEW YORK and DALLAS, Dec. 2, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- AREA Property Partners has acquired three Hyatt Hotels in suburban Chicago in a joint venture with Aimbridge Hospitality, the firms announced.  The three hotels are Hyatt Lisle, close to downtown Naperville, Hyatt Deerfield, in Chicago's North Shore area, and Hyatt Rosemont, near O'Hare Airport.  The combined purchase price of the three properties is $51 million.  

"These Hyatt properties constitute a strategic acquisition as the hospitality sector continues to rebound," said Lee Neibart, AREA Global chief executive officer. "All are in convenient Chicago area locations with a high volume of traffic and offer significant potential going forward."

Aimbridge Hospitality will operate the three hotels, all of which will continue under the Hyatt brand.  Approximately $13.5 million has been allocated for ongoing capital improvements to ensure that the hotels continue providing the best service, amenities and experience for guests.

"We are delighted with all aspects of this joint venture acquisition," said Dave Johnson, president and CEO of Aimbridge Hospitality. "We are excited to expand our relationship with AREA Property Partners, while also strengthening our relationship with the brand by adding three full service Hyatt hotels to our portfolio."

"We are thrilled to bring the expertise and efforts of the AREA joint venture to these three properties," said Jim Chu, Senior Vice President, Owner Relations and Franchise Services at Hyatt Hotels & Resorts. "Hyatt appreciates the management expertise, knowledge of the industry and professionalism the AREA/Aimbridge joint venture brings to the Hyatt family of properties. As we continue to execute our strategy of recycling capital in order to expand Hyatt's presence around the world, we look forward to expanding our well established and successful relationship with AREA Property Partners and Aimbridge Hospitality."

The 316-room Hyatt Lisle features 13,200 square feet of meeting and function space and is located directly off Interstate 88 at the IL-53 N exit on Corporetum Drive, less than five miles from downtown Naperville. Each guest room in the hotel is suite-sized, with separate sitting areas, sleeper sofas and gorgeous city or Morton Arboretum views.  

Located in Chicago's prestigious North Shore area, the 301-room Hyatt Deerfield features 15,000 square feet of function space and is just minutes from both downtown Chicago and O'Hare Airport.  

The 206-room Hyatt Rosemont is conveniently located minutes from O'Hare Airport and near downtown Chicago's bustling shopping, nightlife and cultural events.

About AREA Property Partners

AREA Property Partners, formerly known as Apollo Real Estate Advisors, is a leading international real estate investor and fund manager on behalf of prominent government and corporate pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, foundations, endowments, and high net worth individuals.  Since the firm's founding in 1993, AREA Property Partners has overseen the establishment of multiple real estate funds and joint ventures totaling $13 billion in equity commitments for investments in the United States and globally.  Its funds have collectively invested in over 500 transactions with an aggregated value in excess of $60 billion. The firm has offices in New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Paris, Luxembourg and Mumbai.  The firm's Web site is www.areapropertypartners.com.

About Aimbridge Hospitality

Aimbridge Hospitality is one of the nation's leading independent hotel investment and management firms with a proven track record for delivering superior returns for its strategic partners in a variety of markets and economic cycles. Aimbridge provides management, asset management, development, renovation and consulting services. Based in Dallas, Texas, Aimbridge currently owns and/or manages over 60 upscale, independent and branded hotels with nearly 11,000 rooms across the United States and the Caribbean, including such affiliations as Marriott, Hilton, Embassy Suites, DoubleTree, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Aloft, Hyatt, Wyndham and the Phoenix Inn Suites chain of hotels.  For more information on Aimbridge Hospitality, please visit www.aimbridgehospitality.com.

SOURCE AREA Property Partners