3 hotels sold in South Beach

A trio of historic buildings in Miami Beach has been purchased by South American real estate and hotel group Lennox Miami Corp.

The $14.7 million sale included the 62-room Peter Miller Hotel at 1900 Collins Ave.; the 12-unit Miller Apartments at 229 19th St. and the 12-unit Peter Miller Apartments at 1915 Liberty Ave.

All of the buildings were designed in the 1930s by architect Russell Pancoast.

The seller was Kabo Realty Corp., based in Miami. M1 Hospitality Group, a division of real estate brokerage and investment firm Metro 1 Properties in Miami, represented both parties.

Plans for the properties have not been announced, but the broker said the new owners could potentially add more rooms as well as a pool and spa to the hotel.

-- HANNAH SAMPSON

• Ex-UBS banker enters plea: A former banker at Switzerland's UBS pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Miami to a tax fraud conspiracy charge that accuses him of helping a wealthy U.S. client hide assets from the Internal Revenue Service.

Renzo Gadola, 44, entered his plea at a brief hearing after court documents were unsealed charging him with the crime.

The documents claim Gadola and an unnamed second Swiss banker helped an unidentified Mississippi man hide an account at UBS and open another secret account at a second Swiss bank.

Prosecutors say he and the other banker tried to prevent the client from disclosing his secret accounts to the IRS. During a November meeting at a Miami hotel, according to court documents, Gadola told the client the likelihood that his new accounts would be discovered was ``practically zero percent.''

• Sheraton hangs shingle: A former Wyndham hotel will open under a new brand Wednesday: Sheraton Miami Airport Hotel & Executive Meeting Center.

The first Sheraton in Miami-Dade, the hotel at 3900 NW 21st St. has undergone $2 million in upgrades over the last four months in preparation for the change. The hotel, with 405 guest rooms and a 20,000-square-foot meeting center, is owned by Maryland-based Thayer Lodging Group.

Sheraton adds the Miami hotel as part of an expansion that will bring 50 new hotels to the brand's portfolio over the next three years.

• Mandarin Oriental shines in guide: Just one spa in Florida received the top rating from Forbes Travel Guide -- and it's in Miami.

The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Miami was one of only 20 spas worldwide to receive five stars from the guide, formerly Mobil Travel Guide. This was the third year in a row that The Spa received the award.

Forbes Travel Guide rates hotels, restaurants and spas throughout the U.S., Canada, Beijing, Hong Kong and Macau. This year, 54 hotels, 23 restaurants and 20 spas received five stars.

Only three Florida hotels received the five-star award: Four Seasons Resort Palm Beach, The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach and The Ritz-Carlton, Naples

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/12/15/1973903/3-hotels-sold-in-south-beach.html