San Francisco Westin Beats Property Tax Assessment on Appeal

The taxable value of the historic St. Francis hotel in San Francisco will be reduced, after a California appeals court ruled that the city’s assessment board of appeals used improper methodology in reaching its $785 million figure.

The board didn’t remove the full value of three nontaxable, intangible assets—a management agreement with Westin Hotel Co., in-room movies, and guest laundry services—from the hotel’s taxable value, Justice Danny Y. Chou wrote Thursday for the California Court of Appeal, First District.

In 2015, Blackstone subsidiary BRE Diamond Hotel LLC bought Strategic Hotels and Resorts LLC, which owned the St. Francis, triggering ...