CANADIAN PIPELINE
The Canadian pipeline has experienced a year-overyear increase of 10 % by projects and 17 % by rooms , in October standing at 188 projects / 22,962 rooms .
Top five Canadian markets : 1 . Calgary : 21 projects / 3,242 rooms 2 . Edmonton : 17 projects / 2,178 rooms 3 . Toronto : 17 projects / 2,917 rooms 4 . Saskatoon : 12 projects / 1,258 rooms 5 . Vancouver : 8 projects / 1,399 rooms
Top franchise companies in Canadian pipeline ( accounts for 54 % of Canadian pipeline ): 1 . IHG : 32 projects / 3,592 rooms 2 . Hilton Worldwide : 27 projects / 3,425 rooms 3 . Marriott International : 27 projects / 3,620 rooms 4 . Best Western International : 15 projects / 1,399 rooms
The top five brands in Canadian pipeline : 1 . Holiday Inn Express : 20 projects / 2,205 rooms 2 . Microtel Inn : 19 projects / 1,646 rooms 3 . Best Western : 7 projects / 598 rooms 4 . Best Western Plus : 7 projects / 703 rooms 5 . Courtyard by Marriott : 6 projects / 861 rooms
Source : Lodging Econometrics
CONCORD PROCEEDS WITH CAUTION
Like many hotel developers , Concord Hospitality is chasing the booming demand for new U . S . select-service hotels . But President and CEO Mark LaPort says the Raleigh , North Carolinabased company is doing it with caution , concerned some secondary markets risk being overbuilt .
“ We ’ re worried about markets that had reemerged but are now seeing rapid development ,” LaPort says .
Cleveland , for example , has nine new hotels in the pipeline . “ We were going to develop a property there , but pulled the plug ,” LaPort says .
Yet LaPort admits to being “ guilty ” of playing in the crowded Manhattan market , with two properties under construction and another in nearby Jersey City , New Jersey , across the river from Freedom Tower . “ Our biggest one under construction now is over US $ 190 million , not what select-service people typically think about ,” he says . “ One is US $ 80 million-plus , and we ’ ve actually signed a
“ WE ’ RE BUSY HAVING FUN . WE ARE ALSO WORRYING ALL THE TIME BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT IS COMING AROUND THE CORNER .” – MARK LAPORT contract to manage another select-service hotel in Manhattan .”
Concord Hospitality , a development and management company with more than 90 hotels in its portfolio , has 14 hotels under construction in the United States , and its focus is on continuing to build , rather than buying — although it does purchase assets opportunistically .
“ Our focus is almost exclusively select-service , but we do develop some large urban select-service ,” LaPort says . “ We are also developing universities in second-tier cities that might be US $ 15 million to US $ 25 million ,” he adds .
While select-service is a priority for Concord , Laport says the company is still involved in some fullservice projects . In fact , Concord has been approved to develop full-service Marriotts in Columbus , Ohio , and Atlanta as well as a smaller conference hotel near Columbus .
“ There are not a lot of full-service hotels in the pipeline ,” LaPort says . “ We are just getting to the point where in better markets you can underwrite them . They are also changing the character of the offering . We are approved to do a fullservice hotel in Pittsburgh , but the model will be not to have a big banquet space . It will be very tight , built more as a transient hotel . But we feel we ’ ll have much better upside on rate , be it a Renaissance or Marriott .”
Additionally , Laport says the company is looking at a project in downtown Miami , and he predicts the domestic development boom has another three years , maybe longer , with secondary markets opening slowly but surely across middle America and places like Memphis , Tennessee .
“ We ’ re busy having fun ,” LaPort says . “ We are also worrying all the time because you never know what is coming around the corner . But I feel that as long as one is careful , and as long as something doesn ’ t blow up in the Middle East … we just don ’ t try to underwrite those unknowns .”
44 HOTELS December 2014 www . hotelsmag . com