New firm buys Marquette Hotel

Triton Hospitality Group announced Tuesday it has purchased the Marquette Hotel in downtown Minneapolis for an undisclosed amount.

Triton is a newly formed boutique investment firm based in Southern California that focuses on underperforming assets. It has announced plans to invest in property and guest-related improvements for the 281-room hotel, located at 710 S. Marquette Ave., according to a news release.

A duo of hospitality and investment veterans launched Triton just this year. John Murphy, founder and former president of Evolution Hospitality, and David Parsky, founder and former managing principal of Arris Investment, founded the company and both serve as partners, the release said.

“The Marquette exemplifies what Triton is currently targeting in our acquisition strategy,” Parsky said in the release. “The ability to take a contrarian view on a struggling market that was fundamentally strong pre-COVID, an ‘A’ location that should be first to recover in the market, an opportunity to reset basis at a substantial discount to both replacement cost and prior cycle trades, and some level of physical and financial complexity.”

Austin, Texas-based JMI Realty last purchased the property for $74.5 million in 2016, according to an electronic certificate of real estate value. This works out to over $265,000 per room.

Neither the eCRV database nor Hennepin County public property portal had information about Triton’s acquisition at the time of publication.

The hotel is located just down South Seventh Street from the Nicollet Mall and is housed in the 57-floor IDS Center. The 12-story hotel was constructed in 1970 and underwent renovations worth $25 million in 2017, which included work on guest rooms, lobby, meeting spaces, public areas, and dining and beverage spaces. At the time, it was also rebranded as a member of Hilton’s Curio Collection, Finance & Commerce reported.

The hotel has 25,800 square feet of event space in 19 rooms. This includes the Windows on Minnesota upscale event space, located on the IDS Center’s 50th floor. It also has some of the largest guestrooms in the Minneapolis market, and its dining options include The Jolliet House Social Club and The Marquette Lounge, the release said.

Triton has appointed Evolution Hospitality as manager, which it calls its first step to maximize “the four-diamond hotel’s full potential.”

“We are excited to work in lockstep with our friends at Evolution Hospitality in the repositioning of the Marquette and are thrilled that our first acquisition is in the great city of Minneapolis, a city we know well,” Murphy said in the release.

Triton will invest in projects related to the hotel’s food and beverage outlets, guestroom HVAC system, and Windows on Minnesota. It also plans to add two Topgolf Swing Suites and transform the fitness center, the release said.

“Triton will use its vast experience and operational acumen to leverage every and all revenue opportunities through an aggressive sales, marketing, ecommerce, revenue management and brand alignment effort. As we bring new and returning customers to the hotel, our highly tenured team will be keenly focused on engaged service and brand leading customer satisfaction,” Murphy also commented in the release.

Source: Finance-commerce.com