Pebblebrook Hotel Trust has completed its $5.2 billion acquisition of Bethesda, Maryland-based LaSalle Hotel Properties. The transaction includes the sale of five former LaSalle properties for $820.8 million in gross proceeds. Pebblebrook is slated to sell up to $1.3 billion worth of LaSalle hotels over the next year in an effort to reduce its debt.
The five hotels include the Park Central San Francisco and the Park Central New York/WestHouse New York, which were sold for a combined $715 million. Gild Hall, also in New York, was sold for $38.8 million, while the Embassy Suites Philadelphia Center City was released for $67 million. The agreement between the two hotel entities was first announced in September, when Pebblebrook won the bid over the Blackstone Group. Jon Bortz, previously CEO of LaSalle from 2001 to 2009, will now serve as chairman and CEO of the merged companies, which comprise a combined portfolio of luxury addresses in or near 18 key urban markets.
