The company is selling the Red Lion Hotel on Fifth Avenue for $71 million.  In addition to the franchise agreement, the company is entering into an affiliation agreement with a subsidiary of Destination Hotels & Resorts to facilitate the cross-promotion of hotels between the companies.  The company currently anticipates that the closing will occur by the end of the second quarter. 

“This is exactly the type of agreement we were targeting,” said Jon E. Eliassen, President and Chief Executive Officer of Red Lion Hotels Corporation.  “This sale gives us the opportunity to monetize a valuable asset and strengthen our balance sheet while at the same time maintaining the Red Lion brand in a key location in downtown Seattle.  We are also very pleased to add a franchisee to our Red Lion system that is affiliated with such highly regarded companies as Lowe Enterprises and Destination Hotels & Resorts.”

The 297-room Red Lion Hotel on Fifth Avenue is centrally located in downtown Seattle just a few blocks from Pike Place Market and the Washington State Convention Center.  Red Lion Hotels Corporation announced in January 2011 it was listing the hotel for sale.  Chris Burdett of CBRE Hotels in Seattle is representing Red Lion in the sale.

Red Lion Hotels Corporation is a hospitality and leisure company primarily engaged in the ownership, operation and franchising of midscale hotels under its Red Lion® brand.  As of December 31, 2010, the RLH hotel network was comprised of 44 hotels located in eight states and one Canadian province, with 8,557 rooms and 425,397 square feet of meeting space.  The company also owns and operates an entertainment and event ticket distribution business.