Project Description
Overview
I led the identification of a historic trophy asset and the full negotiation of the lease on behalf of a fund acting for a leading global luxury hotel brand. The mandate required a single point of coordination across technical–legal assessments, heritage constraints, dealings with public authorities, and the economic structuring of the lease, through to execution and subsequent addenda.
Client Profile
The client is an international fund with a long-term mandate in high-end hospitality. The goal was to secure a prime landmark in a European capital, to be operated by a global luxury hotel operator, while ensuring full compatibility with the property’s heritage and museum constraints. The institutional landlord required strict protections on image, access, permitted uses, and functional coexistence.
Approach
I originated the asset and set a two-step negotiation path: first a preliminary lease plus a loan-for-use (comodato) to start works and filings, then the definitive lease on bankable terms. The economics were calibrated with an indexed fixed rent and a GOP-linked variable component, backed by the operator’s corporate guarantee and a clear allocation of maintenance and insurance obligations. We also managed phased delivery (initial and final handover protocols) tied to archaeological prescriptions, inventories, and photographic records, integrating addenda that governed removals, protections, and the timeline for effective possession.
Results
The fund secured a thirty-year lease over an iconic asset, with a fixed/variable structure aligned to international practice and strong landlord protections on uses, signage, functional coexistence, and circulation. The documentation set includes handover protocols, technical addenda, and land-registry attachments, with clauses on indexation, force majeure, operational governance, and confidentiality—ready for lender and institutional investor due diligence. The outcome is a robust contractual platform that enables the operator to open and run a luxury hotel in a listed property while preserving its cultural value.
