LOS ANGELES — JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality Group announced that in contemplation of a major expansion of the J.W. Marriott hotel at L.A. LIVE, the company has been retained by AEG to explore recapitalization opportunities and secure a strategic partner for the JW Marriott and The Ritz-Carlton hotels, two properties located at AEG’s L.A. LIVE sports and entertainment district in Downtown Los Angeles, California.
“We are seeing incredible demand for luxury hotels both domestically and globally as they outperformed during the pandemic,” said Gilda Perez-Alvarado, global CEO, JLL Hotels & Hospitality. “This offering represents the largest urban luxury hotel offering globally since the pandemic hit in March of 2020 and is a unique opportunity to partner with a best-in-class owner to take the hotel expansion project to the next level.”
The planned hotel expansion will include a brand-new room tower and conference center, adding more than 860 rooms and in excess of 150,000 square feet of ballroom and meeting space to the existing JW Marriott at L.A. LIVE. The 5.6-million-square-foot sports and entertainment district is also home to Crytpo.com Arena, the home of the Los Angeles Lakers, LA Clippers, LA Sparks, and LA Kings; Microsoft Theatre, a 7,100-seat venue that hosts numerous high-profile events and concerts each year; and a variety of popular restaurant and entertainment venues. In addition, the development has a community benefits agreement in place, which has provided jobs for the surrounding community.
“As we prepare to embark on the planned expansion of the JW Marriott, bringing in a new strategic capital partner with deep hospitality experience will ensure the best prospects for the success of this vital project. With demand currently very strong for high-quality hotel investment opportunities in marquee locations, we believe now is the right time to identify a partner to help us complete this project well in advance of upcoming major citywide events such as the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Olympics,” said Ted Fikre, vice chairman and chief legal and development officer, AEG. “There is no doubt that because of their unrivaled reputation and experience in the industry, JLL is the right choice to help us identify a strategic partner who will invest capital in this unique hospitality opportunity.”
The JW Marriott and the Ritz-Carlton Los Angeles are the marquee properties of the L.A. LIVE mixed-use entertainment district and serve as anchor hotels for downtown Los Angeles and the adjacent Los Angeles Convention Center. Recently renovated in 2020, The 18-story JW Marriott has 878 rooms, including 73 suites and 134,000 square feet of meeting space across 44 meeting rooms. The hotel offers four food and beverage outlets, and guests have access to a fitness center, rooftop outdoor pool and bar, full-service business center, barbershop/beauty salon, valet-dry cleaning, and concierge services. The five-story Ritz-Carlton has 123 guestrooms, including 22 suites, and includes the 24 Sky Lounge, a full-service restaurant, the Ritz-Carlton Spa, the exclusive Ritz-Carlton Club Level, a full-service business center, luxury car rental, and limousine/luxury transportation services. Both hotels are LEED Silver certified.
The JLL Hotels & Hospitality team representing AEG is led by Senior Managing Director John Strauss.
“The hotel industry continues to recover from the pandemic and luxury hotels, in particular, have fared very well—up nearly 17 percent over 2019 levels,” Strauss said. “AEG has been a collaborative partner with the City of Los Angeles for more than 25 years, resulting in the revitalization of DTLA, including the addition of numerous residential and retail developments. This is an exceptional opportunity for an experienced hospitality partner to continue the vision for L.A. LIVE and DTLA and take advantage of the recovering hotel markets.”
