09-11-07 Silver Companies' closes on 10.8 acres for Forest Hill Heights development in Germantown, TN, slated for a four-story Hyatt Place Hotel and four outparcels

The Daily News

Published September 11, 2007

Seller: Forest Hill Associates

Details: 10.8 acres in Germantown slated to become a four-story Hyatt Place hotel with four outparcels. The buyer is Silver Cos., a master land developer based in Boca Raton, Fla., and metro Washington. The parcel is at the southeast corner of Winchester and Forest Hill-Irene roads in Germantown.

The hotel is slated to be on the southeast portion of the parcel, with a 1.7-acre outparcel to the west of it and 1.7-acre, 1.5-acre and 1.9-acre outparcels on the north side of the property.

"The Hyatt Place hotel is what I would refer to as a very upscale, businesspersons' hotel. It's a 127-room prototype hotel," said Dennis Weiss, executive vice president of Silver Cos.
Though Hyatt has been converting many Amerisuites hotels into Hyatt Place properties, this will be among the brand's first new-built properties, Weiss said. Silver Cos. currently is building a Hyatt Place in Jacksonville, Fla.

Hyatt Place amenities include a full-size gym, a Starbucks facility, a beer and wine bar, and limited food service, he said. The rooms, which are all mini-suites, have 42-inch plasma TVs and hookups for iPods and other devices.

As for the outparcels, Weiss said Silver Cos. plans to sell or lease the front three sites to banks or restaurants. The company might turn the one west of the Hyatt Place into another hotel, he said.
Silver Cos. has signed a development contract with the city of Germantown to grade the property, install drainage and build access driveways into the parcels, said Marvin Bolinger, Silver Cos.' chief operating officer. Work on the site is set to start shortly and will take four to six months, he said.

The hotel is slated to open in late 2008.

Neibel Construction is the contractor for the master-grading portion of the project. The architect of the Hyatt Place is Chicago-based Cubellis.

General contracting bids are due in the next few weeks on the hotel, Bolinger said.

"We could not be happier with the city of Germantown. They have been extraordinary to work with - from the mayor to the city manager and particularly Andy Pouncey, the assistant city manager. They have been marvelous. We were told up front, 'Oh my god, it's Germantown, don't, don't, don't,' that kind of thing. We have found just the opposite.

"Quite frankly, our owners are looking for more opportunities in the (Memphis) area. ... We like Memphis and Germantown."