The huge, garbage strewn lot on the corner of 125th Street and Lenox will possibly be home to a new Hyatt Hotel and Whole Foods at the ground floor. The Wall Street Journal reports on football star Emmitt Smith's ambitious plan alongside other developers to make the $80 million, 200 room luxury hotel and retail spaces happen. Other hotels have been unsuccessfully confirmed along 125th Street in the boom years so we will only know if this will really happen once the ground breaking starts on construction. Read more about the potential 125th Street development in the WSJ article: LINK.
Friday, April 30, 2010
☞ READ: Harlem Hyatt Planned at Lenox & 125th
The huge, garbage strewn lot on the corner of 125th Street and Lenox will possibly be home to a new Hyatt Hotel and Whole Foods at the ground floor. The Wall Street Journal reports on football star Emmitt Smith's ambitious plan alongside other developers to make the $80 million, 200 room luxury hotel and retail spaces happen. Other hotels have been unsuccessfully confirmed along 125th Street in the boom years so we will only know if this will really happen once the ground breaking starts on construction. Read more about the potential 125th Street development in the WSJ article: LINK.
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I hope this happens!
ReplyDeleteWholefoods!!!!
Ulysses,
ReplyDeleteWhere is my credit for breaking this story on Harlem+Bespoke?
Thank you.
Obviously the whole foods is a great idea but I'm wondering how successful a luxury hotel will be on a 125st and Lenox. I have a very sad feeling that this will never happen.
ReplyDeleteAgreed Anon 11:26. Too many stalled mega developments on 125th in the past 5 years. What's different about this one? They should keep it smaller scale so it will be more likely to happen. Otherwise, Whole Foods would do extremely well where ever it ends up in Harlem. There are a lot of condo spaces that are already developed that they can choose from as we speak.
ReplyDeleteWow, I give you a lot of credit for breaking this news. Whole Foods would be great! Hotel, yes! This area has a lot of B&B's who are filled with plenty of tourist. So bring it ON!
ReplyDeleteReal World? Insufficient density of potential customers & clients for either. This is pie in the sky hoopla lacking real world grounding. Vornado was closer to the mark with the now defunct plans lower on 125th but on the MTA line, offering a 1 stop MTA train to Grand Central Station from 125th, that would be the preferable location to serve corporate Manhattan. Also, if you want to serve CU and CU expansion, higher North allowing walking to Broadway, etc. and on that line.
ReplyDeleteFairway was justified in Harlem based on the perks and incentives for locating in Harlem and easy on/off ramp entry/exit for NJ and CT dwellers as the left midtown and downtown Manhattan.
This location does not really have the underpinnings that the CU end of 125th offers or the MTA end of 125th offers.
I would love to see it on a pure idealism level and notion, however it's hard to justify when you get down to brass tacks. I would sum this up as more of the "tickling of my ass with a feather" teasing. (Harlem Park, MLB, Macy's, etc.)
And what's this "Emmit Smith's role adds credibility"? LOL, you gotta be kidding me? Rule #1, if this was viable fertile land, area, etc. actual real big time developers, the Vornados of the world, real people who know what they were doing would have jumped on this long ago, these people are the greediest SOBs on the planet and would make a buck on 125th and Lenox....if there was a buck to be made and they could swing and pull off the deal. But ya know what, the pros, the seasoned people who know what they are doing know it's mission impossible. Viable land has Ratner and Vornado and these types fighting over it. So what do you get? A football player who adds ZERO value other than the possibility of duping investors to jump in. Emmitt Smith is a "Johnnie-Come-Lately" to the available land and knows ZERO about NYC urban development. These are people looking for a fool to part with his money, that's all.
Anon 12:09,
ReplyDeleteWhat's with the negativity? The arrival of such a development would solidy Harlem as NYC's hottest up and coming neighborhood. That's just a fact. Neighborhoods are constantly changing (for better or worse). In the case of Harlem, for the better.
Why is it so hard for you to picture a hotel 15 blocks from Central Park? 40 feet away from express trains to midtown in 15 minutes? 2 blocks away from FDB, Harlem's so called 'Gold Coast' and the A/B/C/D. Or 3 blocks away from 4/5/6 and Metro North?
You're just a hater.
Big time Atlantic Yard developer Bruce Ratner already constructed the mall across the street from this corner of Lenox so what are you talking about anon 12:09? It's all about the money available out there and the big developers have felt the financial pinch like everyone else. The 2,3 express train is right at this corner where the hotel would be and is much quicker than the slow 1 train at the CU expansion area.
ReplyDeleteHow about 5 minutes away from the FDR, West Side Highway, GW Bridge, and RFK Bridge?
ReplyDeleteThis lot( Lenox & 125th) today. Lot on Park & 125th tomorrow. Little by little. We're not asking for Harlem to turn into Rome in a day.
12:09 ,
ReplyDeleteEither Sai Baba or one of his cohorts.
I don't think of the Hyatt as a luxury hotel, but agreed a Ritz or Four Season's wouldn't do great here. I do think there is natural tourist base served not only by Harlem's cultural and architectural attractions, but also by Columbia and Yankee Stadium.
ReplyDeleteI think a Bed Bath & Beyond would do great up here as well.
There have been a lot of stalled developments but it sounds like this has most of the financing lined up, the city being the last issue. And the city wants to get one of these projects across the goal line.
I'm glad people are trying to find a good use for the lot on 125/Lenox BUT I don't think a hotel there is viable. The surrounding area is not developed enough and there isn't the density of affluence necessary to support it. Whole Foods might do okay there but it would still be a risk although one worth trying. Perhaps potential developers should look at Best Yet Market by way of comparison to see how many customers it pulls in during one week and then try to extrapolate from that.
ReplyDeleteLOL Green Girl! Hyatt is kind of moderate. The ritz would be too far reaching but the Four Seasons would be a great fit. Hey, Aloft/W chain is opening up in a couple of months on FDB so only positive things can happen in the future.
ReplyDelete"I don't think a hotel there is viable. The surrounding area is not developed enough and there isn't the density of affluence necessary to support it."
ReplyDeleteYou have got to be joking? How do you tie the success of a hotel to the surrounding area? Harlem's residents won't be spening nights at the hotel. The hotel is for tourist and for individuals on business travel. With the right contacts, the developer can strike deals with Wall Street and midtown firms. With Emmit Smith on board, this will certainly be a success. Emmitt Smith is a champion on all levels and categories. I don't see him giving up.
>>> LOL Green Girl! Hyatt is kind of moderate. The ritz would be too far reaching but the Four Seasons would be a great fit.
ReplyDeleteUmm ... I said the Hyatt was NOT a luxury hotel, and that a luxury hotel like the Ritz would NOT do well there. The Four Seasons is of the same caliber as the Ritz. The point is a moderate hotel like the Hyatt would be fine but not the Ritz or Four Seasons.
Aloft is a boutique hotel, so if it succeeds, it will set the pace for the type of developments to come in the future.
ReplyDeleteThe Hyatt is much more suitable for the area. It is luxurious enough. Hopefully the hotel design fits in with the local character of the nabe.
ReplyDeleteThere will never be a hotel there, the immediate area lacks the amenities Manhattan hotel clients demand immediately there. I am being very serious here. I hold little hope a commercial development of significance will ever take root at this spot. Therefore The UN should be located right on 125 & Lenox, it's former space on the East Side developed for other use. This is a real plan that can have legs and funding and is an across the board win win for all. The traffic, jobs, people will be the base and foundation for the robust development of Central Harlem.
ReplyDeleteAnon 12:59,
ReplyDeleteWhat are you credentials? I want to take you seriously here.
Green Girl, what can we do to help make sure this gets across the finish line? Who is making the decision on tax-exempt financing at the city level?
ReplyDeleteIf there is any potential for community *support* to make a positive difference (for once), we should figure out what the pivot point would be.
Anon 12:59,
ReplyDeleteReally? I'm interested in finding out what exactly is it about the 125th & Lenox location you think offers UN dignitaries more security than the current lone-standing isolated location by the water?
It looks like the NYC Capital Resource Corporation is the responsible agency, and they can be contacted at:
ReplyDeleteNYCCRC@nycedc.com
Pete - Wish I knew!! I'd say start a letter writing campaign but think it's too late. Sounds like the vote is on Monday. But I do think given all of the controversy around the rezoning of 125th street AND all of the failed projects think the city is under serious pressure to get something done. Fingers crossed. Let's hope they do it in a manner that serves the community.
ReplyDeleteAnything, and I mean anything, but the status quo, Green Girl, will serve the community. What good does blight do for anyone? Look what it did to the Corn Exchange on Park Avenue.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure how this works when the hotel that was supposed to go up on 125th between lenox and 5th stalled. and that was AFTER the shovels went into the ground.
ReplyDeletePS90 Condominiums: a $40 million conversion of a century-old public school, 74 units located at 220 West 148th Street between Adam Clayton Powell and Frederick Douglass boulevards. Frame this in your mind my friends. Now Emmit Smith thinks he can build a 200 room Hyatt hotel, Whole Foods, YMCA, & Cultural Center on 125th & Lenox for $80M? Oh yeah..another.$20M from the City?
ReplyDeleteNot-a-chance-in-hell. Developer 101 says $300M would be the real price tag on this puppy, and that, how ridiculous the numbers are relative to the talk is what makes this whole thing silly quite frankly.
Let's all write to the author of the WSJ article to show support for the proposed Hyatt project! We need to get something done on that corner....all of Harlem will benefit from this. I'm sure Columbia Univ. and it's stakeholders will also benefit from this project.
ReplyDeletemailto:michael.saul@wsj.com
NumberRunner 3:41 - What do you think the motive is for voicing this proposal?
ReplyDeleteNumberRunner,
ReplyDeleteWhen this project comes up, don't hide yourself.
Uhm, what does the WSJ have anything to do with financing this project anon 3:48? It's better to write to city officials to get this sort of thing going.
ReplyDeleteAnon 3:57,
ReplyDeleteGood one! LOL. I was scratching my head at that comment as well. I guess at this point, we should write letters to anyone. New slogan: Build Harlem
How many people writing here go to community board meetings? You have to start somewhere, unglamorous as it is. Also think seriously about what new politicians you want to represent Harlem in future elections.
ReplyDeleteThis hotel development would be huge for Harlem, especially Central Harlem. It would also detract some attention from FDB and bring some to Lenox Ave, which is way more beautiful anyone. As a Harlem resident, I welcome and support this development.
ReplyDelete6:23 -- Can we knock off the boosterism / ankle-biting vis-a-vis Lenox and FDB? I mean, really.
ReplyDeleteI live in the vicinity of FDB and applaud this potential development on Lenox as much as anyone.
We all stand to benefit from continual improvement all across greater Harlem -- east, west and central, from top to bottom.
*Applause* @Anon 8:38.
ReplyDeleteI mean really. I too live near FDB and it seems that every time there's a post about business or property along FDB there's always the 'my-back-yard-is-greener-than-yours' commenter. I'm pretty sure both sides stand to benefit from all good things - they're just a few blocks from eachother!
Apparently some people on this board think that the politicians actually have the power to make up their own minds...that's what big money lobbyists are for.
ReplyDeleteUsually it's FDB this and below 125th that....but when good things happen outside of FDB then it's good for all of Harlem...
ReplyDeleteHarlem is in fact a community...so let's stand together and support this project and others like it which are sure to come!
ReplyDeleteAnon 8:38 and 10:39,
ReplyDeleteIt "should" be as you describe it, however, that is not the case. The people along FDB are the first to come on here and say "we live in South Harlem, south of 125th and FDB, and anything west of there...our park is Morningside Park and Central Park." Sometimes they even call their neighborhood Morningside Park.
11:50 PM, Harlem is not a community. it's a "regional district". and entities bend over backwards to separate and distinguish themselves from "Harlem". Columbia U does not want the name - brand of Harlem connected to it so they call their new expansion region "Manhattanville" (reaching back to historic justification to separate in the modern day).
ReplyDeleteThere is no thread of cohesion through many of the nabes other than a subway line. There are those insistent and deliberately not recognizing Marcus Garvey Park and only recognizing Mt. Morris Park.
The real estate companies, in the marketing and selling of 110CPN on the corner of 110th and Lenox would not recognize it as being located in "Harlem" and it's common to see properties clearly indisputably located in "Harlem" recognized as being located on the UWS or even "Lower Washington Heights".
Some how, some way entities rationalize why and how their "separate" self branding is not an effort to shed themselves as "Harlem".
I could go on but the point is a "community" embraces itself and all that it is. In Harlem there is a concerted effort by numerous entities to separate, distinguish and or reinvent community "branding" from the "whole" (Harlem).
I prefer to say I live in Harlem rather than " Lower Washington Heights." I think Washington Heights, for the most part, is a slum.
ReplyDelete@Anon 11:50 - "There are those insistent and deliberately not recognizing Marcus Garvey Park and only recognizing Mt. Morris Park." Do you really think it's deliberate? The Mount Morris Park Community Association was formed in the eighties after the name change and they still refer to it as Mount Morris.
ReplyDeleteI think people just go by what they hear most or what they've been used to saying. I'm a native New Yorker and know that the Joe DiMaggio Highway will always be referred to as the West Side Highway, Robert Kennedy Bridge will always be referred to as the Triboro Bridge, Clinton as Hell's Kitchen and so on and so forth.
Incidentally, when I first moved into the neighborhood I referred to the park as Marcus Garvey, because that's what the sign says. But after hearing lifelong residents refer to it as Mount Morris Park, well, do what the romans do. Same goes for Lenox/Malcolm.
Listen, the practice of real estate entities bending, stretching & arbitrarily renaming areas they market is not at all exclusive to Harlem. For the sake of the bottom line, it happens everywhere in and out of Manhattan. i.e. How else do you suspect they lured potential unsuspecting buyers with a budget for Williamsburg over to their Flatbush listings if the ad didn't say Williamsburg in the first place. This among many other reasons is why RE sales agents notoriously do not top off any integrity scales and why the bulk of New York City below 110th has been fractured into several tiny splintered block by block enclaves.
Harlem is not immune from this. As disingenuous as it may be and as long as it still works, the names of adjacent neighborhoods whose housing stock command more money, be it be UWS or Morningside Heights, will always be plugged in - even as they feel the warm red glow of the Apollo sign blaring through the window on open house day!
I was doing my geneology and determined my direct Dutch ancestors lived and farmed in Harlem in the 1660's, so I am baaaaack. I think the lot on 125th and Lenox should be turned into a Native American farm , to grow crops , like the Native Americans did way back when on the Harlem Plain. School kids and tourists would be drawn to the site and we could have Elsie the Cow, or something. And crow corn. How about a Botantical garden? :)
ReplyDeleteHow about we return this land to its original inhabitants...? No, not the people refered to as Indians or Native Americans. They also arrived here just as the Europeans did. We need to return this land to the people whom the Native Americans encountered when they first settled this beautiful place known as America/North America.
ReplyDeleteFarms and gardens....That's just crazy talk. Build a hotel and whole foods. It's the best we can hope for realistically. It would start the next phase of change Harlem and especially 125th street needs..... As far as the UN goes, they would need significantly more land than what 125 and lenox would offer..... If we are dreaming, really what Harlem needs is a decent large modern building by a significant architect. Something that raises the bar for new building in Harlem. So many (all!) of the new construction condos are boring and cheap looking. A world class piece of architecture at that location would really help the neighborhood feel like its part of Manhattan and would pay homage to all of the amazing turn of the century architecture. It amazes me that these developers build such crappy cheap residential condo buildings right next to such historic and beautiful brownstones.
ReplyDeleteWell, it looks like this garbage strewn lot has just had a haircut. Walked by this morning and somebody has done a round with the rubbish bag and lawn mower. Coincidence? Always one for the fine details haha.
ReplyDeleteI think this block will be ready for a Whole Food maybe by 2015, I thought it would be great to put a hotel there though, it would be hard keeping trash off the property though if built.
ReplyDelete