Younan Properties Successfully Completes Two WestLake Park Sale in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES, CA,  Feb. 28, 2011 ‐‐‐Younan Properties, Inc., a fully‐integrated, national real estate owner and operator of Class A office buildings in five major U.S. office markets announced that it has completed the disposition of Two WestLake Park (top left photo) in Houston.

KBS Realty Advisors has acquired the 455,142 square foot, high rise located in WestLake Park, long considered the epicenter of Houston's dynamic Energy Corridor submarket.

"Two WestLake Park is a Class A property located in a historically strong submarket with a premier tenant base and consistently strong occupancy," said Zaya Younan (middle right photo), Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "This sale aligns with our goal to opportunistically dispose of certain assets and continue to deliver strong financial results to our investors and re‐deploy our capital."

"The Houston market is an extremely strong and important market to us," added Younan. "We intend to continue our growth in Houston through acquisitions where we can add value by leveraging our operational and leasing strength."

H. Dan Miller (lower left photo), Senior Managing Director of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler (HFF), represented Younan Properties in the sales transaction. "The Younan team acted with professionalism and integrity throughout the entire process of this disposition, making for a smooth and seamless transaction," said

Miller.

Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and developed by Hines Interests in 1982, WestLake Park is recognized as the pre‐eminent office park within west Houston due to its location, construction quality and amenity base.

Sitting on 5.4 acres, the Two WestLake Park office building complex includes the 17‐floor office building, a seven‐level parking garage, and the WestLake Club, a private, 67,000 square foot social and athletic club.

 With an overall occupancy of 97.0%, Two WestLake Park boasts a premier roster of tenants including ConocoPhillips, British Petroleum, Merrill Lynch, Raymond James and Marubeni‐Itochu.

With this disposition, Younan Properties will own and manage 10 office properties in Houston including Norfolk Tower in the Greenway submarket; 1700 Younan West Loop South in the Galleria submarket; Shepherd Place in the Inner Loop/River Oaks submarket; Younan Place in the Westchase submarket; Younan Square in downtown Houston; Younan Tower, Bridgewood I, Bridgewood II and Greenbriar Place in the Greenspoint/North Belt submarket, and Younan Plaza in Regency Square.

For more information, visit http://www.younaproperties.com/

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Contact: Denise Davis, 818.703.9600 x 9705

Ddavis@younanproperties.com

http://www.hfflp.com/

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Hersha Hospitality Management Establishes Partnership with Clean the World to Help Fight Hygiene-Related Deaths

PHILADELPHIA, PA,  Feb. 28, 2011 – Hersha Hospitality Management, operator of upper-upscale, upscale, and mid-scale branded and independent hotels in major metropolitan markets, today announced that the company will partner with Clean the World, an Orlando, Fla.-based non-profit organization, to help fight the spread of preventable diseases around the world.

 Hersha’s partnership with Clean the World plans to annually provide more than 1,000,000 bars of recycled soap and 500,000 bottles of recycled shampoo, gels and lotions for distribution to children and families worldwide.  Hersha will be the largest hospitality management company to partner with Clean the World since its founding.

Through this partnership, Hersha plans to annually provide approximately 9,000 children with soap for an entire year and 4,500 children with bottled amenities for an entire year.  In addition to preventing countless deaths due to poor hygiene, Hersha’s partnership with Clean the World plans to divert approximately 90 tons of waste from landfills annually.

The program will be implemented by Hersha Hospitality Management, and plans to include a portfolio encompassing more than 10,000 rooms.  Rollout of the program began in the fall of 2010, and full adoption by the remaining properties is expected over the coming year.

“Hersha developed EarthView, our sustainable hospitality program, because stewardship of our local and global communities is one of the guiding values we embrace as a company,” says Naveen P. Kakarla (top right photo), President and CEO of Hersha Hospitality Management.

 “Our new partnership with Clean the World complements the mission and goals of EarthView.  We understand the global demand for soap and other hotel hygiene products, and we want to leverage our resources to help save the lives of people who are suffering from poor hygiene and improper sanitation.”

“Hersha Hospitality Management understands the value of the Clean the World program and its essential role in our goal to advance a global hygiene revolution,” said Shawn Seipler (middle left photo), Executive Director at Clean the World.

 “By expanding this program throughout their entire portfolio, Hersha and EarthView will solidify their reputations as industry leaders for environmental sustainability, and serve as an inspiration for other hotel partners to follow with their own green initiatives.”

 Additional information about HHM may be found at http://www.hershahotels.com/

.For more information on Clean the World,  visit: http://www.cleantheworld.org/

 Contact: 

Bennett Thomas, Vice President of Finance and Sustainability, Hersha Group, (215) 238-1046

Jerry Daly, Chris Daly, Media, (703) 435-6293, chris@dalygray.com

Crossman & Company Names Former Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty Executive Vice President

ORLANDO, FL --- Crossman & Company, which is one of the largest retail leasing and management firms in the Southeast, recently appointed former Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty (top right photo) Executive Vice President in a move that will enhance the company’s leadership role in the industry and facilitate continued growth throughout the Southeast, said the company’s president.

John Crossman (lower left photo), President, said Mayor Crotty is one of the most recognizable and powerful people in the State of Florida, and will be able to offer some insight and leadership that will help propel the company into the future.

“We are a strong, growing company, and Mayor Crotty brings a level of experience, maturity and leadership that will substantially enhance our capacity to serve our clients throughout the Southeast,” said Crossman, a frequent speaker at regional and national retail conferences who is widely regarded as one of the industry’s leading experts.

Crossman said Mayor Crotty’s public service experience–14 years in the Florida legislature and 19 years in Orange County government, including two terms as Orange County Mayor– may open doors, but his strategic skills will prove more valuable.

“Mayor Crotty tends to look at the longer term and the bigger picture,” Crossman said. “He brings a perspective to this industry that is already facilitating opportunities to increase business, create jobs and help Florida recover from this recession.”

For more information,  contact:

John Crossman, CCIM, President, Crossman & Company, 407-581-6218, jcrossman@crossmanco.com

Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142, lvershelco@aol.com

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Hunter Realty Receives Four Top Broker Honors from Hotel Brokers International

ATLANTA, GA Feb. 28, 2011—Hunter Realty, a nationwide hotel investment advisory firm, recently received four top honors for excellence in hotel real estate brokerage in 2010 from Hotel Brokers International, the world’s leading hotel real estate sales organization.   The awards and recipients are:

·         Broker of the Year—Hunter Realty’s president, Teague Hunter (top right photo), CHB, accepted the award on behalf of the seven-office firm.  It is the third consecutive year that Hunter Realty has taken the award.

 “We took a contrarian stance several years ago and added new offices and associates while others were shrinking, and the strategy has paid off,” said Hunter.

“We expect to set a record in transactions in 2011, both in the full-service and select-service segments.  We now are a truly national firm and have significantly increased our bench strength and relationships within the industry with owners, buyers, brands and capital providers.”

·         Salesperson of the Year—For the second straight year, Kyle Stevenson (middle left photo), senior vice president and head of Hunter’s Washington, D.C. office, received the top individual sales honor.

 “Kyle is a great sales professional and team player,” said Lee Hunter (middle right photo) CHB, ISHC, chief operating officer of Hunter Realty.  “He brings significant expertise in financing and provides our clients with valuable insights into markets, trends and pricing.”

              New Associate of the Year—Gary Mills (lower left  photo),  vice president and head of the firm’s Dallas office, received top honors for his 2010 sales results as a new member in the HBI association in 2011.  “Gary’s background and strong relationships with hotel owners and operators were instrumental in quickly bringing our Dallas office into full production,” said Lee Hunter.

·         Unique Deal of the Year—The firm notched the unique deal with the sale of two adjoining downtown Atlanta hotels to Georgia State University.  The transaction, which encompassed 453 rooms in two hotels adjacent to the university campus, created a win-win situation by providing much-needed student housing at an attractive price below replacement cost and a fair value for the seller’s real estate in a challenging market.

Contact:    Patrick Daly, Jerry Daly,  media, (703) 435-6293                

  patrick@dalygray.com, jerry@dalygray.com