Financing for full-service hotels outside major CBDs has been almost nonexistent since 2007. But the JV of Phoenix Hospitality Group and 2GR Equity found a way to make a Hilton Garden Inn development deal happen in Live Oak through a public-private partnership with the city, says 2GR Equity principal David Gregory (right, with principals Elizabeth Roll and Isaac Gregory.) In addition to a grant from the city to help subsidize construction, Live Oak is entering into a new 20-year lease for the hotel’s conference center that includes an abatement of hotel occupancy taxes.

The newly formed JV will build a five-story, 138-room Hilton Garden Inn at the southwest quadrant of I-35 and Loop 1604 off of Pat Booker Road, across from the Forum at Olympia Parkway (one of the largest shopping centers in Texas), Elizabeth tells us. The hotel will be near 1.5M SF of retail. Next door will be a brand new Starbucks, 54 Street Grill, and McAllister’s Deli. Phoenix will oversee development and then manage the hotel. 2GR is also set to close in November on a hospital/MOB in the South Texas Medical Center in Northwest San Antonio.