UC's Investment Arm Buys Half Moon Bay Ritz-Carlton for $193 Million

The University of California's investment division has reportedly purchased the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Half Moon Bay for $193 million. The price works out to one of the larger Bay Area hospitality trades of the year, and it closes a chapter that turned on a tax dispute rather than a strategic sale.

The mechanism is straightforward. The previous owner owed roughly $2 million in back hotel-occupancy taxes to the city of Half Moon Bay. The city declined to offer relief, and the property went up for sale as a result. What does this change for the resort? On paper, ownership shifts to a deep-pocketed institutional buyer; the Ritz-Carlton brand and operations carry on under the Marriott-affiliated flag.

For the city, the deal resolves an awkward standoff. A municipality of Half Moon Bay's size doesn't easily absorb a $2 million delinquency from its single most visible hotel taxpayer. A $193 million transaction puts the asset back on a paying footing, with occupancy taxes accruing going forward.

What else is moving in the Bay Area this morning?

• SFO ground stop. The FAA halted flights into San Francisco International just before 8 a.m. Monday due to dense fog. By 9 a.m. the ground stop had become a ground delay, with inbound flights running an average of 96 minutes late on low ceilings.
• Johnny Foley dies at 94. The Irish-born singer who gave San Francisco's Union Square Johnny Foley's Irish Pub its name has died at 94.
• Vallejo homicide. Police are investigating the city's 13th homicide of the year, after a man was fatally shot Sunday afternoon near the Marina on Mare Island Way.

Washington angles worth tracking

Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, a key House Republican, says he is weighing whether to back a Democratic-led effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

In his first post-midterm interview, on 60 Minutes Sunday night, President Trump conceded his immigration and deportation policy may have been "too tough" in the eyes of voters. He has since circled back to claims that the election was "rigged" and dishonest, according to the New York Times.

And in sports finance

The NFL has informed 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk that he owes the team about $13 million in bonuses he received after signing a four-year contract extension in 2024, an Associated Press source says. Aiyuk is currently trying to get reinstated to the roster, and the clawback adds a financial dimension to what was already a roster-status fight.

Back on the coast, watch whether UC's investment arm signals further hospitality acquisitions — a university endowment-style buyer stepping into resort real estate suggests institutional appetite for coastal California assets remains strong even when the seller's exit is forced.