It seems there is going to be some serious competition on the Williamsburg luxury hotel scene. BQE’s Hotel Le Jolie has monopolized the market for some time now as the only decent overnight option. A new condo-hotel is scheduled to open next year on Bedford Avenue. But the big news is that the Williamsburgh Savings Bank on South 6th Street has just been sold to a local hostelier. It is expected to be converted into a luxury hotel, keeping with the status of the building.
It is one of the neighborhood’s iconic landmarks. Juan Figueroa paid $4.5 million for the 1875 bank building that was most recently an HSBC branch. Figueroa is better known for his $18-a-night New York Loft Hostel in Bushwick—very popular with the young foreign tourists. Massey Knakal’s Brendan Maddigan who brokered the deal thinks that a restaurant or events space will come up in the domed building.
There could be expansion on a smaller building and a neighboring parking lot. But the important thing to note is that any redevelopment will have to be done as per the guidelines of Landmarks Preservation Commission. The building was designed by George Post, the New York Stock Exchange architect is protected within as well, limiting construction options.
Via: observer
