An entity managed by Omaha-based Paul G. Smith Associates has acquired property in downtown Des Moines that includes a 12-story building occupied by the Surety Hotel, Polk County real estate records show.
PGSAH Des Moines LLC, managed by the Omaha group, paid Aparium Hotel Group $31.6 million for the property at 206 Sixth Ave. (pictured) in a transaction that was recorded Sept. 18.
Aparium Hotel Group, based in Chicago, bought the property in 2017. At one time, the structure – originally known as the Hippee Building – was Des Moines’ tallest building. Built in 1913, the Hippee Building housed finance-related businesses, including the Southern Surety Co., which occupied the structure for more than 20 years. The building was purchased in 1947 by Des Moines Building-Savings and Loan, which, after a rebranding in the 1980s, called the property the Midland Building…