Bullish Times to Come for NY Hotel Market--Despite Fears of Foul Fiscal Weather

NEW YORK CITY-”I’m very bullish on the New York hotel market,” proclaims Art Adler, managing director of North American operations for Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, headquartered here. “The New York Hotel market is on of the strongest and most diverse in the country. It has benefited in the last eight to ten years or so from little new supply growth and the diversification of the city’s economy to entertainment and much more tourism.”

“For example,” he tells GlobeSt.com, “Times Square used to be a detriment—-now it’s an urban playground. It’s become a hotel epicenter for the city. If someone had said Times Square would become a popular hotel spot years ago, people would have thought he was crazy. The Marriott Marquis in 1985-1986 was one of the first.”

Adler says news such as Millennium Partners closing on a $400-million loan to buy a hotel portfolio that includes the Ritz Carlton on Central Park South and the Ritz Carlton in Battery Park City is additional confirmation of the city’s economic strength. While the Rhiga Royal has struggled to make it through the negotiations process with a prospective buyer, Adler notes this is not a reflection of the market. “The Rhiga can get better operating strategies.”