Sirata Beach Resort sells for $207 million
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Dec 5, 2022

The Sirata Beach Resort on St. Pete beach sold to Kentucky-based Columbia Sussex Corp. for $207 million.

The resort, located at 5390 Gulf Blvd., sits on 13 acres on St. Pete Beach. According to a deed filed in Pinellas County an entity linked to Columbia Sussex closed on the sale on Dec. 1. The resort has 382 rooms and the sale price breaks down to approximately $541,884 per key.

The entity linked to Columbia Sussex Corp. also took out a $22.8 million mortgage through Huntington National Bank.

The seller, Texas-based Cresent Real Estate, purchased the hotel in 2017 for $108.19 million, according to the Pinellas County Property Appraiser. The resort opened in the 1960s and Cresent Real Estate began a major $15 million renovation of the property in 2018.

The Sirata Beach Resort is known for its private beach, its beachfront swimming pools, its playground adjacent to the beach and the Sea Breeze Trading Co. shop. On the 13-acre site sits Harry’s Beach Bar, which is named after an original owner of the resort, Harry Nicklaus.

A representative of the Sirata Beach Resort could not be immediately reached for comment.

Columbia Sussex is a private hotel company that has been in the business for 50 years. It owns and operates hotels throughout the country, including in Florida, Ohio, Texas, Alaska and Arizona. It has more than 40 hotels under three brands: Marriott Hotels, Hilton Hotels and Resorts and Hyatt Regency.

The company also operates the Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort and Spa, 400 Mandalay Ave., and Marriott Tampa Westshore, 1001 N. Westshore Blvd.

St. Pete Beach hotels are seeing a wave of interest this year. In September Minneapolis-based Sherman Associates purchased The Hotel Zamora for $38 million and announced a $7 million renovation is planned for the building.

This summer TradeWinds Island Resorts on St. Pete Beach also announced plans for a major expansion. In March, the Postcard Inn on the Beach sold a joint venture partnership for $83 million. The owners are planning some big renovations to the beachfront resort.