The 400-room St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort under construction in Dana Point by Newport Beach-based Capital Pacific Resorts has one of the highest per-room costs in California and the highest among Orange County hotel projects in development.
A CPH official said the per-room cost for the resort project will be about $600,000, ranking it second in the state among recent hotel projects. The 277-room, $330 million Four Seasons in San Francisco under development by Millennium Partners and Goldman Sachs, has a projected per-room cost of $1.1 million, according to an industry source.
Another Orange County hotel project, the 301-room Ritz-Carlton at Park Place in Irvine, reportedly has a development cost of $95 million, or $308,000 per room. That project, however, is not yet under construction.
The $250 million CPH project includes the development of up to 238 luxury residential units that may share the St. Regis’ hotel amenities, and the renovation of the existing Monarch Beach Golf Links oceanfront course and a beach club. Construction financing is provided by Sonnenblick-Eichner Co., LA, which also is arranging $25 million for the renovation of the golf course.
Among the amenities the resort will offer are an executive floor where guests will have access to a private lounge, separate concierge service and complimentary breakfast, afternoon tea, cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. Two presidential suites will measure 2,650 square feet each and include a whirlpool, exercise equipment room and a dining room for up to 16 guests.
Landscaping on the 17-acre resort will feature gardens, fountains and gazebos.
The resort, which will include 30,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space, will target the leisure weekend market and small conferences. Social events, fundraisers and political events also are expected to fill the space.
The St. Regis is being built across Pacific Coast Highway from the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, but Richard Cotter, vice president of St. Regis Hotels North America, said he isn’t concerned about competition.
“Orange County is extraordinary,” Cotter said during a recent site tour. “It has a healthy economy. It needs more than one resort.”
The project will be the first St. Regis beach resort, and is the first of several coastal resort projects to begin construction. In recent weeks, planned resorts at Newport Dunes and Treasure Island in Laguna Beach received approvals to begin construction. n
