n e w s

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 5, 2007

For More Information:
Chris Schroder, SchroderPR, 404.872.7289
chris@schroderpr.com

SONGY PARTNERS LLC CLOSES ON HISTORIC
CHICAGO ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION PROPERTIES

ATLANTA, September 5, 2007 - Songy Partners LLC, in a joint venture with Snider-Cannata Interests LLC of Cleveland, Ohio has acquired the historic Chicago Athletic Association buildings in downtown Chicago, Illinois, for $31 million and will convert the 114-year-old landmark property overlooking Millennium Park into a luxury Omni hotel.

The renovations for the project will cost $125 million, as the buildings are converted into the luxury 4.5-star Omni hotel. This will be paid through a joint venture with Songy Partners, Songy Real Estate Investment Fund II, LLC and Snider-Cannata.

"We're very excited about restoring the Chicago Athletic Association and ushering in a new period of rejuvenation and growth for this historic building," said David B. Songy, CEO of Songy Partners. "The Chicago Athletic Association represents a significant move for our company as we take our conversion model to historic structures."

The project is contingent upon final approvals from the City for Historic Preservation, tax credits and other related approvals.

"Working with Songy Partners, a company with prior experience in urban infill, made our involvement in this project an easy decision," said David Snider, co-founder of Snider-Cannata.

Built in 1893, the 265,000 square-foot, two-building property at 12 S. Michigan Ave. and 71 E. Madison St. will be completely renovated into a luxury hotel facility. The Chicago Athletic Association will be vacating the building. Across Michigan Avenue is Millennium Park, with the Frank Gehry designed Bandshell, Bean sculpture and interactive fountain.

"Back in its heyday, the club was the place to be in Chicago," said former member and board member Jerome Eastman. He was a member in the 1970s and '80s.

The Chicago Athletic Association, a private club founded in 1890, built the club in 1893. Founded by prominent Chicagoans such as Marshall Field A.G. Spalding and William Wrigley, the Club's logo was made famous when Wrigley and other members bought the Chicago Cubs in 1915 and adopted it for the Cubs. It is still in use today.

"We were notified in the spring of 2006 of the opportunity to purchase the building from the Athletic Association," said Songy. "Upon seeing the building, I was overwhelmed by the architecture, quality and location of the building and although this is the oldest building we will repositioning, the structure is in great condition."

The club filed for bankruptcy protection in June 2007, in an effort to bypass a roadblock to the sale that was the result of a court battle between two classes of its members over who could share the proceeds of the sale to the joint venture. Judge Eugene Wedoff declined to consider alternative proposals for the linked properties, clearing the way for Songy Partners to acquire the building.

We thought we had the building closed in the 1 st quarter of 2007, as we had the contract ready to go, and then the members of the Athletic Association membership started debating," Songy said.

Songy Partners was one of 10 companies vying for the property. The field was narrowed to five, then three, and finally two companies. Snider was also a finalist.

Omni Hotels Corp., which will operate the Chicago Athletic Association when it is opened, was chosen after considering a variety of factors, said Songy. "We had more than 10 different hotels groups evaluate the property, then we narrowed it down to three before our search committee finally selected Omni to be the 4.5-diamond flag flying hotel," he said.

This urban infill project marks Songy's first venture into the Midwest. Songy Partners LLC was founded in 1992 to acquire and develop institutional quality real estate. With early projects Houston, Tampa, Miami and Ft. Myers, Florida, the company expanded, moving its headquarters to Atlanta in 1998..

In October of 2000, Songy Partners acquired an abandoned government office building on Peachtree Street adjacent to Earthlink's headquarters and within a block the High Museum of Art. Songy converted it to a profitable 160-room Marriott Residence Inn at 1365 Peachtree Street in Atlanta.

"We saw the office category being overbuilt and looked at moving into hospitality," said Songy. "We applied our background of urban infill and creating value in hospitality, and although it takes more time and dedication than offices, we have found it to be just as attractive."  

The irreplaceable CAA building features exceptional architecture accented by a unique location overlooking Michigan Avenue, Millennium Park and Lake Michigan. Olympic champions Frank Bornamann and George Gaidzik would regularly use the pool in the building for swimming practice back in the early 1900s. The club was founded by 30 to 40 of the cities most successful families, from the Wrigleys to the Fields, and it is said in the 1930s, the mayor of the city was able to run Chicago from the second floor bar. William Wrigley Jr. was known to spar with other prominent Chicago citizens in the gymnasium.

In the Crystal Banqueting Hall, President Teddy Roosevelt changed the way members of the U.S. Senate are elected, from a vote of the state legislature to direct popular vote.

"The club had been declining in membership for years. At its height, it probably had 2,500 members and when I was there it was around 1,800," Eastman said. "It was a great place to go and network and I feel confident in saying it was at one time an anchor of the city."

Chicago-based VOA Architects will redesign the existing structures interior to accommodate the modern hotel environment, "while being very mindful of weaving and maintaining the historic quality of the building," said Songy.

About Songy Partners LLC

Songy Partners LLC (www.songypartners.com) is a commercial real estate firm based in Atlanta, with company offices and projects in Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Mexico City, Knoxville, Fort Myers, Boca Raton, Lafayette, and Dallas. The partnership was formed to acquire, renovate and develop institutional quality real estate projects throughout the United States.

About Snider-Cannata Interests LLC

David Snider and Sam Cannata formed Snider-Cannata Interests in 1997 after working together for several years as executives with The Snider Company. Working alongside William Snider, David's father, they participated in the development of shopping centers, office buildings, office flex buildings, apartments, and condominiums.

About Omni Hotels

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