Dealmaker: Sonnenblick-Eichner Secures $29M Hotel Construction Financing

Sonnenblick-Eichner Co., Beverly Hills, Calif., arranged $29 million in construction financing for the Cambria Hotel Calabasas in Calabasas, Calif.

An international commercial bank loan provided the financing, which exceeded 65 percent of total project costs. “We received nine financing offers, both non-recourse and recourse, from a variety of lending sources including international, regional and community banks as well as debt funds,” said Sonnenblick-Eichner Principal Patrick Brown.

Choice Hotels International, Rockville, Md., and Weintraub Real Estate Group, Malibu, broke ground on the 125-room select-service hotel this month. Expected to open in early 2021, the three-story hotel on Las Virgenes Road will be one block south of U.S. Highway 101/Ventura Freeway, which connects Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The joint venture said it expects to expand new Cambria-branded hotels in Anaheim, Sonoma and Napa, Calif. by year end.

“The location continues to see a strong increase in demand for both business and leisure travelers,” said Choice Hotels Vice President of Development Mark Shalala. “The Cambria Hotel will fill an unmet need in the market, particularly with its close proximity to Pepperdine University and the numerous companies in the area.”

In addition to nearby Pepperdine University, the area’s major employers include the Cheesecake Factory’s corporate headquarters, Harbor Freight Tools and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.