Heritage Hotels: Eldorado hotel purchase finalized

May 31--A New Mexican-owned hotel chain has partnered with private investors to purchase the Eldorado Hotel.

Heritage Hotels and Resorts, which owns three other Santa Fe hotels as well as properties in Taos, Las Cruces and Albuquerque, announced the acquisition Friday. The New Mexican first reported about an agreement between the Eldorado, Santa Fe's largest hotel, and Heritage on May 3.

The transaction, financed by Washington Federal and First National Bank of Santa Fe, closed this week. "This will be the first time in its history that New Mexican families will own the property," Heritage said in a news release.

"The Eldorado Hotel & Spa is one of the premier properties in Santa Fe and New Mexico. We are excited to add this property to our collection of culturally designed New Mexico hotels," Heritage Hotels & Resorts CEO Jim Long said in a statement. "All of our Heritage Hotels & Resorts offer guests an authentic New Mexico cultural experience and tell a unique story about our rich heritage and history. The Eldorado Hotel will remain the premier Santa Fe property and enhance our presence in Santa Fe."

Heritage also owns the Hotel St. Francis, Hotel Chimayó de Santa Fe and The Lodge at Santa Fe.

Heritage also announced several co-investors in the deal, including Randy Talbot, an insurance executive who worked with a family company, Talbot Insurance, and has since expanded into finance.

"Santa Fe is a world class traveler destination. We feel very fortunate for the opportunity, alongside the high quality and tenured Eldorado staff, to provide an experience at the very top of expectations during our visitors stay in this beautiful city and state," Talbot said in the Heritage statement.

Since July of 2010, Talbot has been managing director of Talbot Financial LLC, an investment advisory firm based in Bellevue, Wash. He is a graduate of the Albuquerque Academy and currently serves on the Albuquerque Academy board of Trustees, among other nonprofit interests. He served for years on the Albuquerque Community Foundation Board.

Long is a graduate of the UNM School of Architecture. In addition to founding Heritage Hotels, he has been a principle or founder of American Property, Southwest Brands and Synergy Ventures. For the past six years, Long has served as a board member and past president of the Spanish Colonial Society in Santa Fe. He also serves as an International Trustee of the Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain.

The 219-room Eldorado was built in 1986 and was designed by Santa Fe architect Wayne Lloyd. It employs 200 people and will be managed by Heritage. The Eldorado had been owned by a partnership led by the Guardian Life Insurance Co.

The Eldorado is home to Santa Fe's largest ballroom, the 4,320-square-foot Anasazi Ballroom, as well as two additional ballrooms. The hotel's largest event space is the 6,488-square-foot Pavilion, currently tented to provide additional meeting and social event space.

It is also home to The Old House restaurant , headed by Executive Chef Anthony Smith, who has been honored by Zagat.

Randy Randall served at the general manager of the Eldorado Hotel from 1994 to 2005 and now heads the Santa Fe Convention and Visitors Bureau.

He told The New Mexican earlier this month that if the Heritage ownership comes to fruition, it would be a positive for Santa Fe, as the company can market all its properties in Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Taos and Las Cruces. "Heritage already has a presence here, and certainly having a significant hotel to add to their other three fine properties should be a benefit," he said.

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