JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality Group has arranged refinancing for the Magnolia Hotel Omaha, a 145-key, full-service boutique hotel in the heart of downtown Omaha’s historic Old Market district. The firm worked on behalf of borrower Stout Street Hospitality to secure the loan through Keswick Strategic Capital.
Originally built in 1923 as the Aquila Court Building, the property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. The four-story hotel has more than 11,000 square feet of meeting and event space, including the 1,924-square-foot Magnolia Ballroom and a 2,744-square-foot outdoor courtyard that can accommodate up to 300 guests. The hotel offers 20 suites, including a 1,200-square-foot presidential suite—the largest hotel room in Omaha—as well as Olive & Ira’s restaurant and bar, a business center and a 24-hour fitness center.
Located in the Old Market District, the Magnolia Hotel Omaha is positioned to capture demand from major annual events such as Berkshire Hathaway’s shareholders meeting and the NCAA Men’s College World Series, along with year-round corporate and leisure travel. Omaha is undergoing significant urban redevelopment, with more than $9 billion in projects planned or underway. Nearby developments include the 44-story Mutual of Omaha tower under construction less than a quarter mile from the hotel, a $200 million expansion of the Omaha Convention Center scheduled for completion in summer 2027 and a $950 million modernization of Eppley Airfield expected to be completed in 2028. The downtown Omaha submarket includes 27 hotels totaling approximately 4,500 rooms, with no new hotel supply currently under construction or proposed.
Stout Street Hospitality acquired the property in 2006, when it operated as the Sheraton Omaha, and repositioned it as the Magnolia Omaha following a comprehensive renovation completed in 2007. The sponsor has continued to invest in the asset, most recently completing upgrades to the restaurant, public spaces and guestrooms, along with improvements to building systems, a roof replacement and elevator modernization. The Denver-based, fourth-generation family business owns four Magnolia-branded hotels in Denver, St. Louis, Houston and Omaha. CoralTree Hospitality manages the property.
The JLL Hotels & Hospitality team was led by Managing Director Mike Huth, Senior Director Wyatt Krapf and Associate Henry Winchester.
“The sponsor’s proven ability to create distinctive boutique hotels with strong guest satisfaction and operating performance was a key factor in securing favorable financing terms,” Krapf said in a statement. “With downtown Omaha seeing unprecedented investment activity and the hotel demonstrating solid fundamentals, this refinancing reflects lender confidence in both the asset and the market.”