Sunday, January 29, 2012

Everyone wants to get into the act


From Crains:

The City University of New York is planning to build a hotel in Long Island City, Queens, to enhance its schools' hospitality programs.

CUNY is looking for a hospitality consultant to evaluate a 91,000-square-foot lot it owns at 28-02 Skillman Ave. which is part of its LaGuardia Community College campus, for potential hotel use. The selected consultant will help CUNY analyze the feasibility of a hotel project in light of the current commercial real estate market, review zoning of the site and explore financing options for such a project. The consultant would also ultimately assist CUNY with preparing a request for proposal seeking a developer/hotel operator to partner with and build the project.

“We realized we have a number of programs in the hospitality area and when we explored expanding these programs, one good element is to have your own hotel where students can train,” said Iris Weinshall, CUNY vice chairman responsible for facilities and real estate planning and development. “We hope to hear back from folks, soon, and are very excited about moving forward with this project.”

The parcel of land, bounded by Skillman Avenue to the north, 29th Street to the east, 47th Avenue to the south and 28th Street to the west, is zoned for up to a 600,000-square-foot development. That means there would be no need for the school to go through the lengthy city approval process to obtain a zoning change on the site, according to Ms. Weinshall, who added that CUNY does not plan to build a hotel that large.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gee, another project by an organization which does not pay real estate taxes.

Guss the rest of the city will have to pick up the slack.

Anonymous said...

I was just saying to myself the other day as I was travelling down Skillman Ave, marvelling at all I surveyed, I said, "Self, the ONE THING Long Island City REALLY needs is a new hotel or two".

Anonymous said...

So the next time a hotel fucks up my reservation, I'll know it was a community college student who did it?

Anonymous said...

I don't want CUNY to build a hotel with my taxes - period.

Anonymous said...

Just don't let Dominque Strauss-Kahn check in as a guest, unless you want the hospitality students to get some experience in self-defense.

Anonymous said...

There is already a Days Inn literally across the street from LaGuardia. It would be cheaper and quicker to build a relationship with the existing hotel that is I repeat ACROSS THE STREET (at Thompson Ave & Van Dam St)

Anonymous said...

A faculty parking lot just expensively redone with your taxes.

Lets see if Jimmy No Brainer and his minder, Cathy No-one will say anything to the taxpayers.

Anonymous said...

There are existing hotel facilities, many moderately priced, to serve the area. No.

Anonymous said...

iris is the wife of chuck schumer, another leftie feeding from the public trough forever.

btw , he was the one who broadcast that the California, INDY BANK in 2008,was in financial trouble, causing the depositor's to make a run on the bank. i believe it is now bankrupt.