Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels has arranged the refinancing of the Westin Charlotte on behalf of StarPort I, an affiliate of Portman Holdings. The hotel was developed by Portman Holdings with participation from the City of Charlotte and opened in April of 2003.
The 700-room Westin Charlotte had been open for less than one year. Challenges included a complex ownership structure, which included fee simple and leasehold property, a participation by the City of Charlotte and a strong but not yet long-term track record.

Twelve lenders submitted term sheets, for both floating and fixed bases. The transaction was awarded to a securitized lender. “The Westin Charlotte is a new, state-of-the art convention and corporate hotel located adjacent to the Charlotte Convention Center,” said Arthur Adler, managing director and CEO-Americas for Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels. “Lenders were attracted to this property not only because of the quality of the asset and the strength of the market, but also because of the excellent sponsorship, which included its owner, Portman Holdings, and the operator, Starwood Hotels & Resorts under the upscale Westin brand.

“Lenders were extremely aggressive, despite the fact that this was a complex asset,” said Tom Fisher, executive vice president for Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, who was also instrumental in the transaction.Ê “The hotel included leasehold and fee simple parcels and Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels had to meet the borrower’s objective of leaving a parcel debt-free to allow for development at a later date. These factors made for a complex transaction, but, in the end, Portman Holdings, the City of Charlotte, Starwood and the lender all cooperated to ensure that the transaction was successful for all parties.”
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