Trump Closes On Record Sale Of Old Post Office. Next Up: D.C.'s First Waldorf Astoria
The Trump International Hotel in D.C. is no more.
On Wednesday night, crews removed signs from the hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue after a Miami-based investment group closed on its $375M purchase of The Trump Organization's lease for the historic Old Post Office Building.
CGI Merchant Group, which counts stars like Alex Rodriguez and Floyd Mayweather among its investors, confirmed plans to turn the property into a Waldorf Astoria via a partnership with Hilton Worldwide Holdings.
Trump and CGI first reached a deal on the property at 1100 Pennsylvania Ave. NW in November, after it had been on the market for two years, in what is likely the final turn for the complicated sale process, which required approval from the General Services Administration that came down in March. CGI landed a $285M loan from MSD Capital, the firm backed by tech billionaire Michael Dell, to fund the acquisition and renovation of the property.
The GSA approved the deal after getting commitments from Hilton that it would operate the hotel as a high-end brand befitting the landmarked property. That approval came despite calls from the House Committee on Oversight and Reform to terminate Trump's lease, since elected officials were barred from profiting from the property under the original terms.
The House panel also found that Trump lost $74M on the property between 2016 and 2020. The Trump Organization disputed the panel's findings.
Nevertheless, the total Trump ultimately received for the property will likely earn him a profit and sets a record as the priciest hotel deal in D.C. history, topping a record set by a Georgetown hotel in 2016, The Washington Post reported.
