THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19, 2008

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Westin O'Hare Hotel Up For Sale Again?

According to recent reports, the Westin O'Hare hotel, 6100 N. River Rd. in Rosemont, is back on the market after Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc., a Dallas-based real estate investment company purchased the hotel in November 2006 for $125 million.

Tripp Sullivan, a spokesperson for Ashford, said he could not comment on the possible sale of the property at this time.

The hotel was originally constructed in 1984 and went through a $14 million renovation in 2003, according to Sullivan.

Sullivan said Ashford executives made an announcement in February stating they intended to sell $600 million of $2 billion in hotels throughout the entire country this year.

However, he could not single out the Rosemont hotel at this time.

Money from selling certain hotels will be used to pay down debt and invest in the company's mezzanine lending business, according to reports.

Sullivan said the hotel business has slipped in recent time.

"Our hotels focus more on business travel," said Sullivan. "Currently, there are not many transactions happening in the lodging market."

Westin O'Hare features 525 hotel rooms, 43,000 sq. ft. of meeting space and three food/beverage facilities.