Billionaire developer Steve Ross added another trophy building to his expansive West Palm Beach portfolio with $172.5 million in financing.
Tokyo-based Nomura provided the loan to West Palm Beach-based Related Ross for the acquisition of The Ben Hotel, a 208-room property at 251 North Narcissus Avenue that operates under Marriott’s Autograph Collection brand, a press release states. A Newmark team led by Jordan Roeschlaub and Nick Scribani arranged the mortgage on behalf of Related Ross.
The financing amounts to about $829,000 per hotel key.
A CBRE led by Robert Webster and Ron Danko Jr. represented the seller, an affiliate of Greenwich, Connecticut-based Wheelock Capital, led by Rick Kleeman and Jonathan Paul.
The buyer and the brokers declined to comment on how much Related Ross paid for the hotel, which was completed in 2020 by Raleigh, North Carolina-based Concord Hospitality. A year later, Wheelock paid $106.4 million, or about $511,000 per key, for the hotel, records show.
The Ben hit the market in late 2024 with an asking price of $208 million. The property is within Flagler Banyan Square, a nearly 10-acre mixed-use development that anchors the city’s downtown waterfront. The hotel features 18,500 square feet of meeting and event space and a popular rooftop Italian restaurant, Spruzzo, which offers sweeping views of the Intracoastal Waterway and Palm Harbor Marina.
The acquisition adds another significant asset to Ross’ growing presence in downtown West Palm Beach, where his firm has been instrumental in reshaping the skyline with major office and residential projects, including 360 Rosemary and One Flagler. The deal underscores Related Ross’ emergence as West Palm Beach’s largest landlord. Hospitality is emerging as the third leg of that strategy.
Ross previously built the Hilton convention center hotel. Now he’s pushing a proposed $290 million, 400-key Curio by Hilton next to the Palm Beach County Convention Center on land Related Ross already controls. In parallel, the firm is moving into the private club and marina space with a planned four-story members club next to Palm Harbor Marina, directly across from The Ben.
