Hotelier plans exclusive hotel on site of Hyatt Regency in Sarasota

Kolter Hospitality has reached an agreement to buy the Hyatt Regency in downtown Sarasota and plans to build an exclusive Thompson-branded hotel on the site according to an email from the company’s president.

In the email to the Business Observer, Scott Webb says that as part of the “initial stages of the redevelopment plan, we expect to build a Hyatt-branded Thompson Hotel on site, which will feature innovative design, luxury and personalized hospitality.”

The company did not disclose what it is paying for the property at 1000 Boulevard of the Arts, a timeline for the development or what else could be built on the site.

The property is currently owned by Tampa philanthropist Dr. Kiran C. Patel and a group of investors who bought it in 2017 for $57.8 million. Patel told the Observer on Monday, May 2 that the group was in advanced negotiations with a potential buyer. He was not available for comment Tuesday, May 3.

Thompson is Hyatt’s luxury brand. The company currently has 14 of them in the U.S., including in Hollywood, California; Atlanta; Chicago; and on Central Park in Manhattan. It operates four more in Mexico and one in Madrid, Spain.

According to its website, Thompson “seek(s) out one-of-a-kind unique properties and reshape them into timeless destinations to create the kind of distinct experiences that can transform your day, your trip or even your life.”

Kolter Hospitality, a division of the Kolter Group, has been actively buying up hotels in the area. In April the group bought the 18-story Embassy Suites by Hitlon Sararsota a few blocks from the Hyatt, its fourth property on Florida’s west coast and second in Sarasota.

The Delray Beach-based developer has also built several luxury residential properties in the area, including the 192-unit Saltaire in St. Petersburg and the 73-unit Ritz Carlton Residences in Sarasota.

The new hotel, if the deal closes and Kolter receives all its approvals, will be built adjacent to the planned One Park Sarasota, a luxury downtown development at 1000 Boulevard of the Arts.