Previously, Downtoen and the financial district specificallywere highly populated by week-day traffic but mostly empty on theweekend, but increased tourism, a tightening office market and theaddition of several thousand new residents to the area are allfactors driving additional people to the area and subsequentlydriving the hotel market.

Jeffrey Davis, a senior vice president at Jones Lang LaSalleHotels, said the hotel boom is a trend that is happening all overManhattan as a result of the slowing condo conversions. In the lastsix or seven months, "There's been a pendulum swing of everybodylooking at doing hotels."

Prior to the swing, most developments combined hotel units withresidential condominiums to meet the demand for condos. But as thetrend cooled across the country hotel development came once againto the forefront. "We're seeing a lot more interest since 9/11because there is a lot more money and the banks are willing to lendon hotels again."