Just like Chicago, San Francisco, Honolulu, and Sydney, Hoboken will have its own W Hotel.
For the past two years, it had been rumored that one of the South Waterfront’s developers, the Hoboken-based Applied Companies, was aggressively pursuing the ultra-hip W Hotel chain – a brand from Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. – to take a prime spot on the city’s Southern Waterfront.
Earlier this year, principals from Applied said that a “letter of intent” was signed with Starwood. But skeptics on the City Council and in the public that believed developers were dangling the name of the highly-respected chain in an effort to get two height concessions from the City Council.
But now it’s official: A W Hotel and Residences is coming to the mile-square city.
At a press conference held Wednesday at the Hoboken train terminal, officials from the city, the Applied Companies and Starwood announced that a contract has been inked for the construction slated for River Street between Second and Third streets.
The project will include 225 hotel rooms and 40 “luxury residence” condos. Construction should begin in early 2005, and the hotel is scheduled to open in 2006, said Michael Barry, president of Applied Property Management Company.
Opens in 2006
The W Hoboken Hotel, as it will be called, is the fourth residence property of its kind to be announced in the U.S., following the W Scottsdale, W Fort Lauderdale and W Dallas. It is the 26th hotel in the brand’s portfolio.
According to Starwood officials, the property will feature its signature “W Living Room,” which is a bar with a view of Manhattan, a restaurant, a 5,000 square-foot Bliss Spa, a fitness center, and more than 11,000 square feet of meeting space.
Riding a new trend in upscale hotel design, the W Hoboken will feature 40 high-end residency condos. According to Barry, the owners of the W Residences will be able to use all of the W Hotel’s facilities, as well as have options of 24-hour room service, daily maid service, and the concierge.
Starwood Hotels and Resorts is based in White Plains, N.Y, and operates other hotels, including the Sheraton, St. Regis and Westin chains. Starwood operates 13 hotels in New Jersey including the Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel and Conference Center, the Weston Princeton at Forrestal Village and the Sheraton Atlantic City Convention Center Hotel.
“Hoboken is delighted that W has chosen our community as their first site in the state of New Jersey,” said Mayor David Roberts. “This further validates our city’s reputation as an important destination in the New York metropolitan region and greatly enhances the value of our southern waterfront.”
Faith in Hoboken
Bill LaRosa, Hudson County’s tourism director, said that hotel will be a significant boost to the county’s $1.5 billion tourism industry.
“The fact that they are bringing a W Hotel says a lot about Starwood’s faith in Hoboken,” said LaRosa. “Hoboken is a destination that’s in demand.”
Hudson County alone has around 4,000 hotel rooms, said LaRosa, but this is Hoboken’s first hotel.
“This is a service that is definitely needed in Hoboken,” he said. “It’s a destination town where people want to stay, and now they will have that option.”
Arash Azarbarzin, the area managing director for the W Hotels of New York, said that Hoboken is an untapped market for the hotel industry.
“Hoboken is going through a renaissance,” said Azarbarzin. “Right now there’s plenty of business volume in the area [to support a hotel] and really no competition. There’s nothing like this at all in New Jersey.”
Councilman Christopher Campos added that the project will also generate around 200 jobs.
“That’s what is most important to me,” said Campos Thursday. “I have residents that are really looking forward to those jobs.”
The design
Gwathmey Siegel Architects has been hired to design the 275-foot tall building. The firm is known for its modernist landmarks, ranging from the minimalist addition to Frank Lloyd Wright’s spiraling Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Miami. The firm has also designed Morgan Stanley’s worldwide headquarters at Times Square.
Charles Gwathmey was a finalist in the competition to design the buildings at the World Trade Center site. He was part of the so-called “dream team” of New York architects that also included Richard Meier, Peter Eisenman and Steven Holl.
“We are thrilled that the first W Hotel and Residences to be built in the northeast will be designed by the world-renowned design firm of Gwathmey Siegel,” said Starwood Chairman and CEO Barry S. Sternlicht. “The property will surely be a key centerpiece of the ongoing, exciting revival of Hoboken’s downtown and waterfront district. The magnificent views of Manhattan’s skyline and the stunning waterfront setting and the ability to do a perfect W with all of its components make this perfect site for our next W,” he said.