As we first reported on Sept. 2, a sign appeared on the front door at 338-340 Bowery pointing out that the Whitehouse Hostel was no longer accepting reservations …
[EVG file photo]
Given that hotelier Sam Chang had sold the property, there was not going to be anything temporary about this closure. (Public documents point to The Renatus Group, a Greenwich, Conn.-based privately held real estate investment firm, as the new owner.)
Sure enough. The Whitehouse announced the permanent closure on Facebook back on Sept. 12. (No mention of the closure on the Whitehouse website.)
Plans were filed in April to "convert 4-story lodging house into a 9-story hotel," according to DOB records. The city disapproved the plans again on Sept. 9, records show.
It's not clear if the Whitehouse would be demolished for the new hotel, or if new floors would be dropped on top of the existing structure.
Previously on EV Grieve:
More tenant meetings for White House residents; plus the bed bugs will be exterminated
Another round of plans to convert the Whitehouse Hostel on the Bowery into a 9-floor hotel
The Whitehouse Hostel on the Bowery is 'temporarily closing down'
The Piss Palace is dead! Long live the Piss Palace!
ReplyDeleteTHE BUMS ALWAYS LOSE LEBOWSKI
ReplyDeleteMore luxury hotels/condos- just what is needed. They will prob knock the place down and build from scratch. One less place for the non wealthy to live. Disgraceful.
ReplyDeleteIt is bad enough that Bloomberg rezoned this entire area, allowing for higher density buildings, and taller buildings too. Under Bloomberg, we also got the Torornto-ization of lower Second Ave, with tacky high density glass blocks, Whole Foods, and a whole lot of other stuff. We also got demolition of small buildings along Houston, and on both sides, which were replaced with huge hotels.
ReplyDeleteThis is a given, and there is probably no stopping it. But why has the city not realized that the Second Ave subway station is stretched beyond capacity? We need more train lines servicing Second Ave. For a while, we had the M train, but now we are back to the terrible F train.
The Second Ave station service is the same as it was 32 years ago when I first moved here, but the number up people it serves has multiplied at least 4 times over. Why is Rosie Mendez, and the rest of the community Board not dealing with the fact that the 2nd Ave subway station is underserved, particularly if more and more hotels and high-rise high dense buildings are being approved within feet of this station?
We need at least one more 6th ave line servicing 2nd Ave, and we also need an 8th Ave line servicing this station too.
You are absolutely right 8:44, except that you say Toronto like becoming Canada is a bad thing. Maybe we'll get so me health insurance?
ReplyDeleteI think a better example of growing without regard to infrastructure is Williamsburg and Bedford Ave. Not even enough sidewalk to hold all the natty people.