THE REAL REPORTER ®
THE ANNUAL REVIEW
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RHODE ISLAND DEALS
$16M Finard Purchase Gives Biltmore Life BY JOE CLEMENTS ROVIDENCE — In one of the more upbeat Ocean State deals of 2012, Finard Coventry Hotel Management bought the beloved Providence Biltmore, a 292-room landmark hotel located in the heart of downtown. Originally constructed in 1922 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977, the hotel is remaining open during a $10 million renovation, while Preferred Hotels and Resorts has been installed as operator of the 18-story Beaux-arts structure that has a prominent place on the Providence skyline. “We are delighted to become stewards of this iconic hotel that is so much a part of the fabric of the city,” principal Todd B. Finard said upon his Boston-based firm’s purchase of the property out of receivership under the entity FC Biltmore LLC. FCHM also secured a $16.8 million mortgage TODD B. FINARD from RBS Citizens that is being partly used to upgrade the inn. “It will be an honor to restore this architectural treasure known for its legendary hospitality and charm,” said Finard, whose firm was advised during the JOSHUA M. BOWMAN complex acquisition process by Sherin and Lodgen LLP partner Joshua M. Bowman, an expert in the hospitality arena who also assisted his client on debt and equity financing structuring for the asset. The scope of the planned renovation includes building new infrastructure and systems; a new roof; repair of exterior façade brickwork and remodeling of the ballrooms and meeting rooms, guestrooms, corridors and lobby. The wide-ranging program could take up to two years to complete. Located at 11 Dorrance St., the Providence Biltmore contains 19,000 sf of function space including 18 meeting and banquet rooms and a rooftop grand ballroom that is home to more than 75 weddings per year and many notable events. The hotel has a McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant and a Starbucks in the lobby. Other amenities include the luxurious Spa at the Providence Biltmore, a business cen-
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PROVIDENCE BILTMORE HOTEL, PROVIDENCE RI
ter and fitness center. FCHM is taking on the hotel as the Rhode Island hospitality sector fights to emerge from the 2008 recession, and indications from industry research firm Pinnacle Advisory Group shows the recovery appears to be inching forward. Occupancy has risen from 61.7 percent in 2010 to 62.5 percent, Pinnacle reports, while the Average Daily Rate is up from $112.31 to $120.12 in that same time frame while Revenue Per Available Room is at $75.04, a 5.8 percent gain from 2010. Conditions are even healthier for Providence, which Pinnacle pegs at 67.9 percent for occupancy versus 63.8 percent in 2010. Average Daily Rate is $137.94 compared to $126.42 to start the decade, and RevPAR has soared by 11.8 percent to $93.70. The projection for 2013 is occupancy to hit 69 percent, Average Daily Rate of $141.40 and RevPar of
$97.56 in Providence. The Providence Biltmore is also expected to benefit from no new hotel construction over the near term plus a boost in convention business, which was up by more than 25 percent in 2012.
RJ KELLY BETS ON RI continued from page 66
role at RJ Kelly, a second-generation family firm founded in 1951 by Richard Kelly and now led by Brandon and brother Scott Kelly. Griffin, whose previous experience includes AEW Capital and Berkeley Investments for 10 years, has bought into Boston’s booming Seaport District and other urban centers, but he concurs with Brandon Kelly that the focus will be seeking diamonds in the rough similar to 10 Memorial Blvd. “You will see a lot of us in the coming year in many places,” he says. “We’re definitely going to branching out.”