Hyatt Regency La Jolla
Epic / Waterbar Restaurants
Waterbar & Epic Steak
(369-399 Embarcadero)
San Francisco, CA
Two iconic Pat Kuleto restaurants with an unrivaled location on San Francisco’s waterfront over a panoramic coastline view of San Francisco Bay and Bay Bridge.
Asset Type
Commercial
Acquired
2018
Scope
18,000 SF: 2 Restaurants
Key Investment Thesis
Opportunity to develop industry-leading restaurants in a prime waterfront location.
- Extremely desirable location on the Embarcadero in close proximity to Oracle Park and the Moscone Center
- Opportunity to partner with restaurateur Pat Kuleto
- This is a long-term hold project that has increasing ROI year after year
JMA Value Creation
Negotiated a long-term lease with an exceptional restaurant group and developed the property.
Asset management team works with the restaurants to ensure maximum profitability and sustain the position as two of the top-grossing restaurants in San Francisco
Homewood Mountain & Lake Club
Homewood Mountain & Lake Club
Lake Tahoe, CA
Located on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore, Homewood is an operating ski resort on the largest private land holding in the Tahoe basin, allowing for the development of a four-season mountain / lakefront resort community.
Asset Type
Mountain/Lake Resort
Acquired
2006
DEVELOPED
Ongoing
Scope
>1M Buildable SF
Key Investment Thesis
Private ownership of the mountain and lakefront parcels, in conjunction with entitlements obtained by JMA Ventures, enables for a one-of-a-kind residential ski and lake club development.
- Truly irreplaceable asset in a proven resort market with strong connection to Bay Area.
- Unlike other luxury ski resorts, Homewood is immediately adjacent to Lake Tahoe, one of the most renowned alpine lake summer destinations in the world.
JMA Value Creation
Completion of multi-agency entitlement process and lakefront assemblage of three separate properties allows for the necessary pivot to a residential resort community in partnership with Discovery Land Company.
Resort redevelopment concepting, planning, and permitting
Capital sourcing for individual development phases
Entitlements vested with commencement of construction in late 2022
Fairmont Heritage Place Ghirardelli Square
Fairmont Heritage Place Ghirardelli Square
San Francisco, CA
Ghirardelli Square is a world-renowned national historic landmark sitting on one of the most coveted waterfront properties in San Francisco. Transformational project given landmark designation of the site and change in tenant mix from tourist centric to high-end.
Asset Type
Hotel / Private Residence Club
Acquired
2004
DEVELOPED
2008
Scope
Mixed use retail (101,000 SF across 12 buildings and 283 parking spaces) and a 53 private residence club.
EXIT
Retail: Sold 2010
Private Residence Club: 2012 / 2020 / 2023
Private Residence Club: 2012 / 2020 / 2023
Key Investment Thesis
Ghirardelli Square is a historic San Francisco destination, offering shopping, art galleries, family events, walking tours and more. Steeped in the history of the Ghirardelli chocolate family, dating back to the mid-1800s, Ghirardelli Square was the original site of the family’s chocolate, cocoa, mustard, and box factories. Today, it is a popular destination for visitors and Bay Area residents who desire a unique shopping and dining experience. As one of the first successful mixed-use redevelopment projects in the United States, Ghirardelli Square has been a San Francisco landmark for more than 100 years and to ensure its preservation for future generations, the Square was granted National Historic Register status in 1982. Fairmont Heritage Place opened in 2008 and was Fairmont’s first urban private residence.
JMA Value Creation
Acquisition due diligence and feasibility analysis of the entire development site
Development and construction management
JMA in-house specialists worked hand-in hand with contractors and designers on redevelopment concept
Sourced and negotiated sponsorship from Fairmont to be the brand and manager of the 54 fractional hotel project
Asset managed all aspects of the project including retail lease and financial oversight
Hired and currently manage a JMA inhouse sales team for the fractional sales of the Fairmont Heritage Place
Hearst Hotel
Hearst Hotel
San Francisco, CA
Renovation and transformational adaptive re-use of the iconic Hearst Building into the premier luxury hotel in downtown San Francisco.
Asset Type
Hotel
Redevelopment / Conversion
2026
Scope
113 keys
Key Investment Thesis
The Hearst Hotel will be a once-in-a-generation entry into recovering and supply-constrained SF market with the best luxury hotel delivered at a structurally-advantaged cost basis.
- Situated within the landmark Hearst Building, the project benefits from a one-of-a-kind historic asset in an A+ location, directly adjacent to the city’s existing luxury cluster, reinforcing its position at the epicenter of demand drivers.
- Designed as a bespoke hospitality experience, the Hotel will combine historic architectural character with contemporary luxury, targeting high-end global travelers seeking differentiated, experience-driven accommodations.
- The San Francisco market has experienced minimal new luxury hotel supply throughout the recovery, positioning the Hearst Hotel to enter a structurally undersupplied segment at an attractive point in the cycle.
JMA Value Creation
Over more than a decade, JMA has systematically advanced the Hearst Hotel through key milestones that materially de-risk the project and create a structurally advantaged investment.
JMA has completed comprehensive diligence across all key disciplines, including detailed cost exercises and structural validation, significantly reducing typical development risks associated with complex urban projects.
The project is fully approved (CEQA and City entitlements) and beyond all appeal periods, a significant achievement in a high-barrier market like San Francisco.
The negotiated long-term ground lease with Hearst Corporation provides enhanced structural flexibility and alignment.
JMA has secured a world-class luxury brand and operator, ensuring globally recognized service standards and strong positioning within the ultra-luxury segment.
The engagement of Roman & Williams reflects a commitment to creating a truly one-of-a-kind hospitality experience, combining curated historic elements with modern luxury design.
The project has secured approvals to receive federal and first-of-its-kind California historic tax credits equal to approximately 35% of eligible project costs, enhancing capital efficiency and returns.
Downtown Commons
Downtown Commons
Sacramento, CA
Redevelopment of the former Westfield Downtown Plaza in downtown Sacramento into Downtown Commons (“DoCo”), a 1,000,000 SF mixed-use development surrounding Golden 1 Center, home to the NBA’s Sacramento Kings. The project was developed in a joint venture with the Sacramento Kings and was designed to leverage activity from the 17,500-seat Arena and its CBD location four blocks from the State Capitol Building.
- 300K SF of new retail space
- New 250-key Kimpton Hotel
- 45 luxury condo units
- 120K SF office refurbishment
- 35K SF state-of-the-art Sacramento Kings Class A office space
- 332K SF Macy’s full-line department store refurbishment
Asset Type
Arena-Anchored Mixed-Use
Acquired
2012
DEVELOPED
2017
Scope
1,000,000+/- SF
EXIT
- King’s office sold: 2017
- Condos sold: 2018-2019
- 660 J Street sold: 2020
Key Investment Thesis
Leverage the adjacency to the new Golden1 Center, home to the Sacramento Kings, and prime location in the heart of Sacramento’s CBD, to develop a regionally transformative lifestyle mixed-use project that would deliver significant premiums over the then-current market rental rates, hotel room rates, and residential sales per SF.
- Strategic Location near Traffic Drivers:
- Golden1 Center Visitation – 200+ Arena events per year / 1,700,000+ visitors, including 42+ Kings games, concerts, family shows, community-oriented events, and other sporting events.
- Daytime population – 95,000 weekday office population
- Access – Two blocks from Interstate 5 (nearly 200,000 vehicles per day), four blocks from the regional train depot / future multimodal transit center and served by bus and light rail lines.
- Retail – position as the dominant entertainment, shopping and dining destination in the urban core leveraging Golden1 Center visitors, office worker population, and proximity to surrounding affluent communities
- Kimpton Sawyer Hotel – positioned as Downtown Sacramento’s rate and luxury leader, focused on the customer base and active environment derived from Arena events and an NBA affiliation in an already strong occupancy market.
- Residences at the Sawyer – develop a residential product that did not previously exist in the market including high rise views, hotel amenities, and a prime downtown location. There is no other competitive Residential luxury product in the market.
- Office – build to suit state-of-the-art office to house Sacramento Kings business operations, adding to the daytime population for the project
JMA Value Creation
Downtown Commons has been a catalyst for redefining downtown Sacramento. It has transformed the once-blighted area into a fully-activated, vibrant urban core that promotes foot traffic and collaboration. JMA Ventures worked closely with the Sacramento Kings to create an ecosystem for the Kings’ organization that includes the Kings Arena, practice facilities, Class-A office headquarters, merchandise stores, and ancillary uses while also incorporating other private uses that coexist and complement their operations. JMA’s roles included the following:
Master developer for the entire entertainment sports complex and developer for the mixed-use components
Performed acquisition diligence of site
Managed development and construction
Hired and managed design team to deliver the project with favorable economics
Delivered hotel partnership with national hotel operator
Led construction financing and take-out financing efforts
Provided overall asset management, including retail & office leasing, and financial oversight
