By Opportunity Zone Magazine Staff

Midas Hospitality, a leading hotel development, management and investment firm raised $35 million in four months for its Opportunity Zone fund, largely from St. Louis area investors. The project brings the first hotels to the St. Louis’ Cortex innovation district and Prospect Yards community.

“The Cortex district and surrounding areas have been growing for some time with so much promise still ahead. We knew the area would be well served with upscale, select service and extended stay hotels,” says J.T. Norville, Co-Founder, Midas Hospitality.

The developments currently under construction include the 129-room Aloft and a 152-room Element hotel, which are expected to open in 2020. The general contractor for both properties is MC Hotel Construction, a sister company to Midas Hospitality.

The hotels will accommodate transient and extended stay customers in a location that includes Aon, Boeing, Microsoft and Square and is in close proximity to Barnes-Jewish Medical Center, Saint Louis University, SSM Health and Washington University St. Louis.

“We committed to building those hotels several years ago. It was only later that we learned of the Opportunity Zone designation. As we waited and worked through the regulation guidance, our pride and confidence in St. Louis and the investment decision was strengthened even further,” says Norville.

Norville says Opportunity Zones are of interest to Midas because they believe they are not just good for investors but good for cities and regions. However, he says they are not the reason they will make an investment or pursue a development.

“Our first priority is identifying great hotel investment opportunities that will generate our historic, expected returns through our Midas Hospitality Fund. If we find such an opportunity and it resides within an Opportunity Zone, we would love to participate,” says Norville.

He says, interestingly, as they assessed their portfolio of developments in progress they identified other projects that fell into Opportunity Zones.

“We’re still working through due diligence but expect to launch another offering later this year,” says Norville.

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