MEMPHIS— Having committed to rapidly growing both its owned and managed portfolio and the roster of properties it manages under third-party agreements, the Davidson Hotel Co., which is based here, negotiated two deals this spring that represent each side of its business. In April, Davidson agreed to manage the Radisson Los Angeles Westside Hotel on behalf of new owners The Carlyle Group. Two months later, Davidson entered into a joint venture with the hotel investment firm RockBridge Capital, LLC, to buy the Renaissance St. Louis Airport Hotel, which Davidson also will manage. More deals are likely in the short-term as Davidson sets out to achieve its objective of more than doubling revenues— from $280 million in 2005— to more than $600-million in 2010. Accordingly, the number of properties owned and managed or under management— currently 24, accounting for 7,200 rooms— will increase significantly as well. Access to investment capital isn’t a problem. Davidson’s institutional investor partners have more than $2 billion available to commit to acquisitions and development, according to president/CEO John Belden. “Rather than be tied to one specific opportunity fund, REIT, or publicly held company, we want to grow long-term relationships with a number of investors who believe hotel real estate belongs in their portfolio,” Belden said. Included might be pension funds and life insurance companies in addition to the opportunity funds and public companies. Davidson’s aggressive new attitude comes amid a change in senior management at the company when Belden and his team took over earlier this year from industry veteran Chick Hill. Bridgepoint Hospitality provided much of the capital for the changeover. The company’s roots go back to the 1970s when it was a small regional player that owned mostly Holiday Inns. Over the past 15 years especially, it has changed its focus to concentrate on mostly upscale, full-service hotels, including “big box” hotels with substantial meeting space. “The number of properties may not have changed much in that period, but the size and nature of the hotels changed dramatically, allowing revenues to rise more than six-fold,” Belden said. In addition to the 368-room Los Angeles Radisson, which was acquired from its original developers, Pacific Hotel & Conference Center, LLC, for a reported $45 million, and the 393-room St. Louis Renaissance, which was acquired from affiliates of Marriott International for an undisclosed amount, Davidson this year purchased the 252-room Capital Place Hotel in Austin, TX, also for an undisclosed amount. Unlike the Radisson and Renaissance, which will retain their current flags, the Capital Place is being re-branded a Hilton Garden Inn. With most of the acquisitions, Davidson and its partners are prepared to invest heavily in renovations. Across the portfolio, Belden estimated the company will spend $70 million on upgrades in the next few years. While Davidson has been mostly pursuing acquisitions lately, ground-up projects are in the picture as well. Top-of-mind is the 225-room Westin Park Place in Annapolis, MD, a mixed-use development combining residential condominiums, office space, and retail as well as a hotel, which is scheduled to open next spring. “Construction costs have sky-rocketed recently, due in part to the rebuilding in New Orleans, but we think prices for commodities especially should start to come down in the next year or so,” said COO Patrick Lupsha. Industry-wide, supply has been so constrained that new construction becomes inevitable, he added. Belden and Lupsha also are attracted to some of the new brands that have been introduced in the past year such as Aloft and Hyatt Place. “We’re focused mostly on the upscale segment, but these brands are trying to carve out a new upper tier of select service,” Lupsha said.