Midtown

New York City hotels last month benefited from the highest average occupancy rate in four years, according to the latest figures from NYC & Company.

The city's tourism office reported an average occupancy rate of 92.4 percent in August. The average daily rate edged upward about a buck from July to $285.84.

That's $20 higher than in August 2007, but still about $40 less than this past June, when a typical night cost $325.94.

Hotel rates should only increase over the next several months, as the city's various lodges hit peak travel season.

Last September, the average overnight stay cost $340.33. Rates last November and December hovered around $370.

In the Manhattan office market, the storyline since last summer has been one of decline measured by greater vacancy amounts and static rents. The narrative held coming out of this summer.

A new report from Colliers ABR shows a Manhattan office vacancy rate of 8.7 percent in August, essentially unchanged from July and 2 percentage points higher than in August 2007. The average asking rent was also basically the same in August as in July (and August 2007) at $65.89 a square foot.

There was no roaring out of the summertime into an especially active fall.  read more »

Vornado Realty Trust isn't hell-bent on demolishing the historic Hotel Pennsylvania, anymore -- but it's putting the paperwork in place, just in case.

Vornado recently applied for a Certification of No Harassment from the city, which, if granted, would by no means guarantee demolition but is apparently a prerequisite for tearing down the semi-grungy hotel across from Penn Station.

Vornado, which owns that site and many others in the area, hasn't made up its mind on what to do with the hotel (at least not publicly), and last word was that the company would do one of three things: put a giant office tower in its place, put a smaller office tower in its place with large retail, or simply spruce up the hotel.  read more »

The literary landmark Algonquin Hotel hosted a feline fashion show and birthday party on Thursday in honor of Matilda, the famous inn's finicky house cat, now 13.

"I hope we get to see the cat's pajamas," quipped one quick-witted attendee, as guests sipped $20 purr-tinis while cooing at the various costumed kitties in the hotel's famed Round Table Room.

But something was missing. "We can't find Matilda," an organizer confessed.

The resident blue-eyed Ragdoll -- who was rumored to have been hiding out in the hotel's Blue Bar -- will just have to get used to having other critters around.

The splashy celebration, which benefitted the North Shore Animal League, also marked the beginning of a new pet-friendly policy at the Algonquin, which had previously prohibited guests from checking in their own animals.  read more »

After 10 years of getting bruised and battered by the biggest linemen and linebackers in college and professional football, former West Virginia University and Pittsburgh Steelers standout Amos Zereoue is now trying to finesse his way to success in the smash-mouth New York City restaurant scene.

Which is tougher?

"Life in the New York restaurant scene--hands down," said the 5-foot-8, 200 pound, 31-year-old redshirt restaurateur, looking rather Usher-esque in a white suit and shades, during a boozy relaunch party Wednesday for his 2,200-square-foot eponymously named eatery, Zereoue, at 13 East 37th Street.

Originally opened in 2006, in the former Frere Jacques space, Mr. Zereoue's West African and French fusion restaurant has twice closed down for some needed retooling; most recently, a complete overhaul.  read more »

On Monday night, the Trump Organization threw a lavish party in Midtown to celebrate the launch of its new Trump International Hotel & Tower in Dubai.

I wanted to know: How does the booming hotel market in Dubai compare to that of New York?

The dapper Donald Trump Jr. replied, "The high-end suites over there would be very comparable to the best you have in New York, and vice versa."

Fair enough. But what about bedbugs? Is the high-end Arab lodging scene just as prone to the nasty blood-sucking insects as the inns of Manhattan?

"Not that I’m aware of," the younger Trump said.  read more »

Veteran nightclub broker Alex Picken, founder of Picken Real Estate and Nightlife Brokerage, married his company's creative director, Pornthip "Jije" Sooksai, in a ceremony in Manhattan on Sunday.

Toasting his new bride later that night, Mr. Picken, 49, jokingly stuttered over the words "my lovely wife" -- a term he said "most of you thought you'd never hear me say."

The newlyweds were introduced to friends and family to the tune of the Rihanna hit "Umbrella" during a boozy reception at Providence, a lavish, three-level, 13,500-square-foot nightspot at 311 West 57th Street, for which Mr. Picken served as site selector, negotiator and broker.

The happy occasion may have marked the notorious night owl's official retirement from bachelorhood -- but "not the industry," he insisted.

Over 414,200 square feet of office space opened up for lease in Midtown in May, according to a new report from brokerage Newmark Knight Frank. Total availability in Midtown, the city's top office market, is now almost 19.4 million square feet, up annually 3.4 million feet.  read more »

Yesterday, we got some of the details wrong about Mathew Broderick's new apartment. City records show that Mr. Broderick did indeed take over the title of the fourth-floor co-op at 360 West 36th Street that belonged to his late mother Patricia. But it's unclear whether Mr. Broderick has put his new property on the market.

Mrs. Broderick passed away in 2003, leaving her son responsible for her estate. He lives on MacDougal Sreet, according to the transfer deed, with his wife Sarah Jessica Parker.

Hunkier-than-thou hotelier Andre Balazs has closed on the sale of Hotel QT for a handsome $82 million.

The deal appeared in public records today, though Crain's New York apparently broke the news, with nary a splash, last week.  read more »

The politics of congestion pricing is nearing a boiling point and opponents continue to make the case for a different approach to traffic reduction.

There are, of course other ways of reducing congestion, but Mayor Bloomberg’s proposal has the advantage of generating new resources for mass transit.

On Friday, our new Governor, David Paterson, demonstrated political courage and came out in favor of the plan to charge drivers for entering New York’s Central Business district during the work day. He joins City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno in support of the bill. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has yet to be heard from.

However, lots of prominent politicians are opposing all or part of the Mayor’s plan.

Today, New York's City Council begins formal consideration of the proposal.  read more »

Prolific hotelier Sam Chang just keeps on a-wheelin' and a-dealin'.

One day, he's selling his unfinished Sheraton on Canal Street for $83.5 million, according to The Real Deal.

A few days later, he picks up a new site for $24 million, according to city records. Mr. Chang's latest acquisition, at 431 West 33rd Street, is, according to PropertyShark.com, a 7,000-square-foot parking lot.

Now, the voracious developer may not be known for his valet skills, but he did build a Holiday Inn Express.

One can only assume another McSam hotel is in the works. But which chain? Hilton? Comfort Inn? Candlewood Suites? Stay tuned.

"Well, we won a small victory in the battle, but the fight isn't over yet," said Gregory Jones.

The lead organizer of the "Save The Hotel" campaign was reacting to news that financial giant Merrill Lynch will likely stay put in the city's financial district -- and not relocate to the site of his beloved Hotel Pennsylvania.

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The city's plan to build a park on the property of the upscale apartment building One Sutton Place South just hit a snag.

Sutton Place South Corporation, the owner of the co-op at 57th Street along the East River that's included C.Z. Guest, Patricia Kennedy Lawford and Sigourney Weaver as residents, has filed a lawsuit in New York State Supreme Court to prevent the city from building a park on land that belongs to the building. The lawsuit was filed after the Department of Transportation alerted the building on May 31 of its plans to start construction at the end of June.
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