Private Equity Firm Dauntless Buys Crystal City Marriott for $66M in Latest Hotel Buy
By Keith Loria January 2, 2024 3:52 pm
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Dauntless Capital Partners has acquired the Crystal City Marriott, a 343-key hotel in Arlington, Va., for $65.8 million, according to property records — the latest in a run of hospitality acquisitions in the Washington, D.C., region.
JBG Smith sold the hotel, having come into possession of the property as part of its acquisition of Vornado Realty Trust in 2017. This was the last hotel in JBG Smith (JBGS)’s portfolio.
“The sale of the Crystal City Marriott, JBG Smith’s final remaining hotel asset, signifies another successful step in our capital recycling plan,” a spokesman for the company told Commercial Observer by email. “We continue to advance our shift to a majority multifamily company by way of strategic non-core asset sales.”
JBG Smith was receiving 50 percent of the hotel’s cash flows under a management agreement slated to expire in July 2025, according to the Washington Business Journal, which first reported the sale. JBG Smith’s most recent earnings statement revealed that the Crystal City Marriott brought in nearly $3.8 million in revenue during the third quarter of 2023.
Located at 1999 Richmond Highway within walking distance of the Crystal City Metro station, the hotel was built in 1970 and last renovated in 2019. The hotel features 10,150 square feet of meeting space, a fitness studio and BELL20, a bar and restaurant.
JBG Smith, the developer behind Amazon’s HQ2 and National Landing, was recently named the developer of the planned $2 billion entertainment district slated to bring Monumental Sports & Entertainment and its Washington Capitals and Wizards to Potomac Yard.
The Houston-based Dauntless is on a run of D.C. hotel buys. The firm acquired the Hilton Garden Inn Downtown Bethesda last year for $36.6 million, and, in 2021, acquired the 200-key Moxy Washington D.C. Downtown at 1011 K Street for $86 million and the 143-key Courtyard by Marriott Washington, D.C. at 1733 N St. NW.
Requests for comment from Dauntless were not immediately returned.
Keith Loria can be reached at Kloria@commercialobserver.com.
