Hotels Bring New Style To Fashion District

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The Fashion District isn't just a Monday to Friday destination anymore, as it's also home to a growing number of hotels. NY1's Jill Urban filed the following report.

It’s the home to all things fashion: designer showrooms, manufacturing and industry related retail. But now it seems the Fashion District is the hot new place to stay thanks to a boom in hotels.

"Since 2005 the Fashion District has seen a 700 percent growth in hotels which has had a profound impact on the neighborhood," says Barbara Randall of The Fashion Center Business Improvement District.

Thanks to rezoning back in 2005 to accommodate the Hudson Yards project, hotel development in this part of Midtown took off. In 2005, there were only three hotels in the neighborhood. Now there are 22, which offer close to 4,000 rooms. On some blocks there are multiple hotels back to back.

"We have everything from the Marriott and the Wyndham and the Fairfield Inn and hotels like that to very small boutique hotels like the Strand which is an absolutely beautiful hotel if you haven’t seen it you should go have a look, and the 'Distrikt' hotel. So the mix is interesting and a different clientele so we are seeing everything from hipsters and fashion people to families," says Randall.

It’s estimated that the hotels bring an average of 100,000 new visitors to the district each year, and that will soon increase. Twelve more hotels are slated to open by the end of this year.

All of the hotels are helping to turn the area into a 24/7 neighborhood, which, in turn, is creating an opportunity for retail.

"Most of the retail in this neighborhood catered mostly to the office tenants who were here by and large Monday through Friday. Now with the influx of hotels in the neighborhood they are bringing an additional constituency and these folks shop and eat 24 hours a day, seven days a week," says Scott Galin of the Handler Real Estate Organization.

Galin says to accommodate the new hotel guests the neighborhood can expect to see an influx of restaurants, bars and general retail in the area.

The hotels, rooftop bars and restaurants are already contributing to the vibrancy of the neighborhood, making it a go-to destination for happy hours and weekend outings.