The $835 million sale of the iconic JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort is complete.
Still operated by Marriott International, the resort on Marco Island’s famous crescent beach is now owned by a joint venture between Sculptor Real Estate Income Strategy and Trinity Investments. They bought the hotel from insurance company MassMutual’s $481 billion asset management arm Barings LLC, which owned the property for more than 40 years.One of the few JW Marriott properties located directly on the beach, Marco Island’s resort opened Dec. 18, 1971, as a Marco Beach Hotel and Villas. Built by the Mackle brothers and their Deltona Corporation development company, the property was sold to Marriott in 1979. It was sold to MassMutual more than 40 years ago.
“The JW Marriott Marco Island is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to acquire one of the most iconic resorts in the United States,” said Sean Hehir, Managing Partner, President and CEO of Trinity Investments, in a press release issued Monday, May 4.
Hotel will remain operated as a JW Marriott
“The resort will continue to operate under the JW Marriott brand, maintaining its place within Marriott International’s global portfolio while entering a new phase of planned investment and enhancement,” JW Marriott Marco Island Resort spokesperson Lorin Augeri wrote in a press release.
Situated on more than 26 acres along Southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast with a quarter mile of private beachfront, the JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort has 809 guestrooms and suites, meeting and event space, multiple dining and entertainment venues and access to more than 400 acres of golf and resort amenities.
Who are the companies that bought the Marco Island resort?
Sculptor and Trinity purchased not only the hotel resort on Marco Island but also its two 18-hole golf courses – Hammock Bay and Rookery in Naples. Trinity Investments has made other commitments in Florida properties including The Diplomat Beach Resort in Hollywood, Grande Lakes Orlando Resort, and EAST Miami. The deal was officially made with Marco Hotel LLC and HB Naples Golf Owner LLC.
The investment companies have big plans for improvements at the resort.
Sculptor Diversified, which focuses on “differentiated, stabilized, income-producing real estate,” and Trinity, a global hospitality-focused investment firm, plan renovations, mostly in year two of ownership, Sculptor said in a Feb. 27 SEC filing.
“The renovations will focus on upgrading the property’s amenities (including upgrades to the spa, pool and golf courses) and renovating the guest rooms,” according to the filing.
“Planned investments will focus on elevating the guest experience across accommodations, culinary programming, and shared spaces, while preserving the character and natural setting that define the resort,” according to the JW Marriott Marco Island’s press release.
The resort’s last major renovations – $32 million worth – came in 2015 before rebranding as a JW Marriott. The brand operates more than 100 hotels globally, with select, dedicated luxury beach resorts in key destinations including Marco Island, Los Cabos (Mexico), and Phuket (Thailand). These properties focus on direct beach access and high-end amenities.
At that time, the hotel expanded its restaurant options to 12 restaurants and dining venues, remodeled and built a new tower with 94 adults-only suites and an adults-only bar, along with a gaming and bowling alley open to all guests and the public. The property currently has three towers – the Palms Tower (built in 1972 and renovated in 2016), the Islands Tower (built in 1982 and renovated in 2016) and the Lanai Tower (built in 2019).
“Our resort has long been a place where guests return year after year for the world class service and sense of place that define this property,” said Sharon Lockwood, General Manager at the JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort. “While ownership has evolved, what remains unchanged is our commitment to delivering exceptional experiences for our guests, group partners, and local community.”
Global real estate services investment company arranged deal and financing
JLL, a global commercial real estate services and investment management company with annual revenue of $26.1 billion, arranged the sale and $690 million in financing for Sculptor and Trinity.
JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality Group represented the seller, Barings, in the transaction, the company said in a press release. JLL also worked on behalf of the borrowers to secure a five-year, floating-rate loan through Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase & Co., which is securitized in a stand-alone Commercial Mortgage-Backed Security (CMBS) offering. A CMBS is a fixed-rate, non-recourse loan secured by a first-position mortgage on income-producing commercial properties such as the JW Marriott Marco Island Resort.
“Luxury beachfront resorts of this caliber remain among the most sought-after assets in the hospitality sector,” said JLL Americas Chief Executive Officer Kevin Davis, “particularly properties like the JW Marriott Marco Island that combine scale, irreplaceable coastal positioning, championship golf amenities and recurring membership income − attributes that generate stable cash flows and provide insulation against market volatility while offering meaningful upside potential.”
MassMutual had good things to say about its successor.
“The JW Marriott Marco Island is a high‑quality investment that has delivered long‑term value for our policyowners while serving as a pillar of the Marco Island community,” said Eric Partlan, MassMutual Chief Investment Officer. “Since acquiring the resort more than four decades ago, we have worked with our global asset manager, Barings, to ensure the property’s standing as a premier destination, and believe Sculptor Real Estate and Trinity are well positioned to continue as stewards of this iconic property and members of the Marco Island community.”
The deal is expected to add significantly to Marco Island’s tax rolls.
The sale price is a lot more than the property’s current assessed value of $177 million and $64 million ($244 million total) for the two parcels, said Marco Island Interim City Manager Casey Lucius. Now that the deal has closed, the properties will be reappraised.
“Currently the JW Marriott pays approximately $305,000 in taxes to the City of Marco Island,” Lucius said in an interview in March. “This will increase substantially once the property is reappraised under new ownership.”
Lucius estimated the JW Marriott’s taxes to the city will be about $1 million total after a reappraisal.
J. Kyle Foster is a senior growth & development reporter for The News-Press & Naples Daily News. Reach her by emailing jfoster1@usatodayco.com.
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This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Investors complete purchase of JW Marriott Marco Island Resort
Reporting by J. Kyle Foster, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Naples Daily News
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