5 Buzzworthy Hotels in the Pipeline from Coast to Coast
As the economy rebounds and tourism snaps back to life (thanks in part to those low gas prices), hotels have come to make constant industry headlines. Just this week Hilton Worldwide scooped up five new assets, a Qatari fund plunked down $535M on a Times Square lodging and Starwood shares wowed Wall Street.
Here are five future stunners in varying stages of development:
Where: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Rooms: 183
Rooms: This particular slice (located near Wythe Avenue between North 8th and 14 Streets) of the former hipster zone is the indisputable epicenter of the increasingly glam neighborhood's hotel craze. The Level developer Zelig Weiss turned heads with Brutalist design renderings that have the property bearing more than a passing resemblance to the Meatpacking District's Standard hotel. Construction is currently underway. When it's complete, retail giant the Shopping Center Group will run 40K SF worth of shops. In a concession to North Brooklyn's recent past, a rooftop grange will be open to the public.
Where: Miami Beach
Rooms: 80
Checking in: Anyone who's visited Miami recently knows that construction cranes now vastly outnumber YOLO tanktops. Hotels, whether they're going up or changing hands, have helped feed the boom. Famed architect Richard Meier's expansion and redesign of the fabled, private (and pinkie way up) Surf Club will bestow 80 hotel rooms and 150 private residences on the property and join the new St. Regis in a Bal Harbour hotel boom when it opens late this year.
Where: Financial District, Los Angeles
Rooms: 900
Checking in: Due in 2017, this 73-story, 900-foot tower will be LA's tallest and was built with cutting edge defenses against earthquakes. The InterContinental crew will operate the lodging under its luxury banner. Lower floors will house offices and retail options not far from DTLA as that area undergoes a swift transition from artsy funk to big bucks real estate hot zone.
Where: River North, Chicago
Beds: 250
Checking in: Freehand's original Miami Beach branch caused a stir when it opened in late 2012 and contributed to the so-called "haute hostel" boom for young, hip and not particularly deep-pocketed travelers. The chain chose the Windy City for its second branch and will update, with $5M, the tattered Tokyo Hotel and bring with it the original's mix of "locavore" cocktails and shabby-chic decor when it opens this spring.
Where: Downtown Seattle
Rooms: 1,280
Checking in: Developer RC Hedreen scaled down the number of hotel rooms from 1,680 in its massive convention center and hotel, which civic groups still hope will boost the city's profile among trade groups. Whatever final form the project takes—its road to approval has been a long and winding one—it will most likely be Seattle's tallest hotel and be the prizewinner of a spate of lodgings going up along Amazon-adjacent Stewart Street as it surfs a commercial construction wave that also includes entries by Hilton and boutique companies.
