An affiliate of Orlando-based Elevation Development paid $1.5 million on July 7 for 4.6 acres and a run-down motel on W. Colonial Drive, with plans to hire new management and thoroughly renovate the property, principal Shaman Foradi told GrowthSpotter.
Formerly known as The Palace Hotel and Resort and currently the Jayma Ambe Hotel, the property lies at 4919 W. Colonial Dr., just east of an intersection with C.R. 431.
“It’s a weekly motel with 214 rooms that aren’t being utilized now, only a small portion rented. It’s been an eyesore there for many years, we’re trying to change the atmosphere,” Foradi said.
“We have no plans yet, we’re trying to put a budget together,” he continued. “For the time being we’re transitioning as the new owner, doing the management in-house for now. We’ll clean up the property initially and make a plan for remodeling.”
The hotel was averaging a weekly rate of $180, a value Foradi expects to maintain for now. The property remains open with guests.
Foradi said he and Elevation partner Owais Khanani have been managing the hotel since taking ownership last week, and may look to hire a property manager in the near future.
The buyer has no plans to assemble more parcels around the hotel for a larger redevelopment project, Foradi said.
The property was last bought in August 1995 for $1.25 million by what is now Jayma Ambe Enterprises Inc., an affiliate of Manohar Jain and Dr. Usha Jain, who also own and operate the Orlando Walk-In Emergency Clinic at 4800 S. Apopka Vineland Road.
A trust in Manohar Jain’s name owns two small properties totaling 0.78 acres adjacent to the hotel property’s rear, one undeveloped and the other with a small home. Foradi said his group has no plans to acquire the additional land.
Foradi said he has known the Jain family professionally for years. The Jains also own much of the 50 acres of land in Ocoee at the southwest corner of W. Colonial Drive and Maguire Road, which Elevation has said it has under contract with plans for a mixed-use development dubbed Fifty West Ocoee.
Foradi and Khanani’s buyer entity, Extreme Mini Golf LLC, was formed in October of last year. He said the name of that LLC does not reflect redevelopment plans for the property.
The buyer took out a balloon mortgage worth $1.3 million from Usha Jain, a private lienholder, due in July 2023.
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