US buyers circle hotel near MCG

The Pullman on the Park. Picture: Rebecca Michael.
The Pullman on the Park. Picture: Rebecca Michael.

Two of the world’s largest property investors, Connecticut-based Starwood Capital Group and New York-headquartered private equity firm Blackstone, are among the major bidders vying for a Melbourne hotel positioned between the Melbourne Cricket Ground and the CBD in a $200 million deal.

The Pullman on the Park Hotel is one of Melbourne’s largest properties and has just undergone a $12.5 million refurbishment of its lobby and popular front bar.

The hotel, the largest listing of the year, is being sold by Canadian real estate giant Brookfield.

Commercial Insights: Subscribe to receive the latest news and updates

Sources close to the deal says it had attracted significant attention from offshore groups with three major purchasers vying for it.

Starwood Capital struck up a venture to back local group Arrow Property Investments. The pair and Western Australia-based Pindan Capital bought a St Leonards site on Sydney’s north shore for more than $160 million in December.

Pullman on the Park hotel Melbourne

The Pullman on the Park hotel in East Melbourne.

Last year Starwood moved into Melbourne, joining with Jeff Xu’s Golden Age Group to develop a $600 million luxury residential tower and manage a hotel.

Blackstone has a big appetite for hotels globally and has $6 billion worth of office buildings, shopping centres and warehouses around Australia.

McVay Real Estate’s Dan and Sam McVay and JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group’s Peter Harper and Craig Collins are handling the sale but declined to comment. The five-star hotel, at 192 Wellington Rd, East Melbourne, has 419 rooms, conference facilities, a 1000-seat ballroom and parking for 215 cars.

It was previously known as Hilton on the Park.

This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.