Autumn brings cooler weather, cozy nights by the fire, warm apple cider, and one of our favorite things: chili competitions.

The competition was hot and so was the chili. We asked the winner if they could share their (now) award-winning chili.

All measurements are approximate!

• 1 lb. ground beef (can also use ground pork or sausage)
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1, 15 oz can pinto beans
• 1, 15 oz can kidney beans
• 1, 15 oz can great northern beans
• 2, 15 oz cans diced tomatoes
• 1, 15 oz can tomato sauce
• 1, 6 oz can tomato paste
• 1 can tomato soup
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ¼ cup chopped jalapeno (optional)

Brown meat with salt & pepper. Add the onions about half way through browning process.  Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low and let simmer and hour, or place in a crockpot and let cook for an hour. Add jalapeno half hour before serving. For thicker chili drain the beans before adding.

Congratulations Chris Johnston on winning the 1st Annual Legendary Chili Bowl!

Charlotte and Pineville Hilton Garden Inns acquired in two transactions

Legendary Capital has sponsored the acquisition of the 113-room Hilton Garden Inn Pineville in a $10.7 million transaction, and the 112-room Hilton Garden Inn Charlotte North in a separate $15 million transaction with the same owner. These acquisitions follow two other hotels acquired by Legendary Capital earlier in August.

“The Hilton Garden Inn brand continues to be an attractive investment, and we are happy to have found two in this market,” said Legendary Capital CEO Corey Maple. “These particular properties are expected to be excellent performers after we put them through extensive renovations.”

The hotels are in the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which has a population of 2,637,000. The Hilton Garden Inn Pineville is located near the intersection of State Highway 51 and I-485, an intersection that saw over 192,500 vehicles a day in 2019. The Hilton Garden Inn Charlotte North is located near the intersection of I-77 and I-485, which saw 148,500 a day.

Charlotte is the 15th largest city in the U.S and the fourth largest city in the southeast, with a population of 912,000. Charlotte is the second largest financial hub in the country after New York City, with banks such as Wells Fargo and Bank of America either being headquartered or having their major regional offices in the city. Charlotte is also home to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte which is home to around 30,000 students.

“The Charlotte/Pineville market has so much going for it – everything from corporate headquarters to major universities,” said director of investments Alex Worwa. “The demand generators are all there, and these Hilton Garden Inns will be great additions to the portfolio.”

Legendary Capital announced it sponsored the acquisition of the 113-room Residence Inn Fort Collins in a $17.7 million transaction. The deal utilized Legendary Capital’s proprietary Equity Preservation UPREIT (EPU) mechanism in which Residence Inn ownership contributed the property in exchange for a special class of Transition Partnership Units (T-Units), allowing for the potential preservation of the contributor’s equity as the property restabilizes. The consideration included a payoff of the $11.5 million loan secured by the Residence Inn, $5.6 million in T-Units to the Contributor plus closing costs.

This is the seventh transaction Legendary Capital has sponsored using its patent-pending EPU §721 UPREIT contribution structure since February 2021, following the Courtyard by Marriott in Aurora, CO, the Holiday Inn El Paso Sunland Park in El Paso, TX, the Hilton Garden Inn Houston in Houston, TX, the Sheraton Northbrook in Northbrook, IL, the Hampton Inn Fargo in Fargo, ND, and the Fairfield Inn & Suites Denver in Lakewood, CO.

The Fort Collins-Loveland metropolitan statistical area (MSA) has an estimated population of 310,500 including 166,000 in Fort Collins proper. The city is home to Colorado State University, which has an enrollment of around 35,000.

“The Fort Collins market hits that sweet spot as a mid-size metro,” said CEO Corey Maple. “It has all of the draws of a big city while avoiding some of the volatility we see in major urban centers.”

Fort Collins is home to numerous large corporations, thanks in part to convenient access to young talent. Hewlett Packard, Advanced Energy, Anhueser-Busch all call the city home, and a number of large healthcare systems serve the market.

“The Fort Collins market is youthful, vibrant and full of energy,” said Linzey Erickson, President, Legendary Capital. “We are proud to put down roots in a growing metro that has so many demand generators.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, volunteering improves physical and mental health, provides a sense of purpose and teaches valuable skills as well as nurturing new and existing relationships. This week, we at Legendary Capital lived up to one of our pillars of “Go Above and Beyond” by volunteering our time at the Great Plains Food Bank in Fargo, ND.

If you’d like to find a food bank in your area, visit Feeding America’s website.

If there isn’t one, we encourage you to reach out to a local charity to find out how you can help!