WASHINGTON, DC-Starwood Capital Group has formed a partnership with locally based Perseus Realty LLC for development of Starwood Capital's recently announced 1 Hotel brand. The JV has acquired the vacant former Nigerian embassy at 2201 M St. NW in the West End neighborhood for the project.

Scheduled to open in 2010, it is one of an initial four locations under contract to contain Greenwich, CT-based Starwood Capital's 1 Hotel brand properties, all of which are seeking five-star status and LEED-certification from the US Green Building Council. Others are in Seattle, near Bryant Park in Manhattan, and in Atlanta.

A year ago, Starwood Capital unveiled the brand and said it planned to open 15 hotels under that banner, some of which also include residences, within 24 months. Additional destinations, identified, but not finalized, according to a Starwood Capital spokesman, are Mammoth Mountain, CA; Scottsdale, AZ; Fort Lauderdale; Los Angeles; and Paris.