Westin Times Square owner sues to stop Starwood takeover

Dream Team Hotel Associates claims deal violates exclusivity agreements

From left: Marriott's Arne Sorenson, Starwood's Thomas Mangas and the Westin Times Square
From left: Marriott's Arne Sorenson, Starwood's Thomas Mangas and the Westin Times Square

Owners of two hotels marketed under brands owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts are suing the hospitality firm along with Marriott International, seeking to halt their planned $12.9 billion merger.

Dream Team Hotel Associates, owner of the Westin Times Square hotel, and Cityfront Hotel Associates Limited Partners, which owns the Sheraton Grand Chicago, claim the buyout agreement would violate contract provisions that forbid Starwood from operating other hotels near the ones they own, Bloomberg reported.

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Marriott agreed to buy Starwood after a long and fraught bidding process that included a last-minute challenge from Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group, which withdrew its winning bid in late March amid concerns it would be unable to verify payment and Chinese regulators would not approve the acquisition.

The planned merger will create the world’s largest hospitality firm by room number, including 29 brands such as St. Regis, W, Ritz-Carlton, Bulgari and others. [Bloomberg]Ariel Stulberg