Hines Breaks Ground on Sheraton Georgetown Hotel

By Keith Loria, Contributing Editor

Andy Heard, Hines

Hines and joint venture partner Novak Bros. are developing The Sheraton Georgetown Texas Hotel and Conference Center, a 196,284-square-foot, 222-room hotel located in the Summit at Rivery Park, a 32-acre mixed-use development located on Rivery Boulevard in Georgetown, Texas.

“It is a beautiful piece of property with amazing views located adjacent to a park within a very successful mixed-use development in one of the fastest growing areas in the state,” Andy Heard, Hines’ director, told Commercial Property Executive. “We are thrilled to be developing what we are, where we are. The city and county have been terrific partners, which really made this project a reality and their support deserves recognition.”

When completed, the new Starwood-operated hotel will be seven stories high and include a 30,000-square-foot conference center and a three-level parking garage with 340 spaces.

All guest rooms will offer the all-white Sheraton Sweet Sleeper bed, an oversized work desk, ergonomic chair, high-speed Internet and 42-inch flat panel television. Sheraton Club guests will enjoy upgraded amenities, as well as complimentary breakfast, beverages and evening hors d’oeuvres in the Sheraton Club Lounge.

The Summit at Rivery Park development, also built by The Novak Bros., will include residential townhomes, shops and office space. It overlooks the San Gabriel River and provides direct access to the hiking and biking trails in Rivery Park.

The hotel is scheduled to be complete in the summer of 2016.

According to Heard, this project fills a real niche for full-service hotels with significant conference-center facilities both of which are not currently present in the area.

“Hines is as much about individual project success as we are contributing to the overall communities in which we develop,” Heard added. “This is an important project for the City of Georgetown and Williamson County and one we are very pleased to be associated with. We have brought on a global brand to operate a locally relevant project. Needless to say, we are excited about the overall potential for this development.”

This is not the first time that Hines has partnered with Starwood in Texas. The two have also partnered on the development of several other properties including The Westin Riverwalk, San Antonio, The Westin Galleria Dallas and The Westin Oaks Houston Hotel at the Galleria.

According to PFK’s latest hotel market report, the Austin-area hotel market is among the highest in the country as Austin is considered one of the nation’s fastest-growing metros and is seeing continued strong hotel demand from a number of conventions and conferences, and from popular annual events like South by Southwest and Austin City Limits Music Festival.

“The project fits within a greater integrated master plan which we found particularly attractive in deciding to pursue this project,” Heard concluded. “The Novak Bros. have crafted a unique plan and have been successful in executing all of the phases to date.  The hotel and conference center is the next extension of the plan and a focal point for the remaining undeveloped parcels.”

Currently, Hines manages 402 properties totaling 170 million square feet, which includes 96.5 million square feet for third parties.