New York Marriott Marquis

New York Marriott Marquis
Hotel chain	Marriott Corporation
General information
Architectural style	Brutalist
Location	United States
Address	1535 Broadway, New York City
Coordinates	40°45′33″N 73°59′10″W / 40.759078°N 73.986201°W / 40.759078; -73.986201Coordinates: 40°45′33″N 73°59′10″W / 40.759078°N 73.986201°W / 40.759078; -73.986201
Opening	September 3, 1985
Cost	US$350 million
Owner	Host Hotels & Resorts
Management	Marriott International
Height	175 m (574 ft)
Technical details
Floor count	49
Floor area	1,844,800 sq ft (171,390 m2)
Design and construction
Architect	John Portman & Associates
Other information
Number of rooms	1,892
Number of suites	57
Number of restaurants	The View Restaurant & Lounge Broadway Lounge Crossroads, An American Kitchen & Bar
Website
Official website
"New York Marriott Marquis". CTBUH Skyscraper Database. [1][2][3]

The New York Marriott Marquis is a Marriott International hotel designed by noted architect John Portman. Opened in 1985, it is located on Times Square at 1535 Broadway at the corner of 45th Street.

History

The hotel's construction was first disclosed on November 3, 1972, as a $75-million, 2000-room project to be developed by Western International Hotels and architect/developer John Portman.^[4] The project was officially announced on July 11, 1973 by Mayor John Lindsay and Portman. Construction was set to begin in 1974, with the hotel set to open in 1977.^[5] The project was postponed after a fiscal crisis in 1975, before it was restarted under Mayor Ed Koch.^[6]

Five historic theaters — the original Helen Hayes, Morosco, Bijou, and the remnants of the Astor and Gaiety — needed to be demolished to clear the site.^[7] Protesters, eventually including actor Christopher Reeve, tried to stop the destruction, even forcing a Supreme Court challenge.^[8] By the time construction began, years later, original operators Westin had dropped out due to the delay and Marriott built the hotel in a joint partnership with Portman's development company. The hotel opened on September 3, 1985.^[9]

As a partial replacement for the demolished theaters, the Marquis Theatre was built as part of the approval for the building of the hotel. It is located within the hotel on the third floor.^[10] The Marriott was the first major project in the Times Square revitalization, and has been credited as the starting point for the regeneration of Times Square.

The hotel is famous for its atrium lobby, rising 48 stories to "The View", New York's only rooftop revolving restaurant and lounge. The View is the third highest restaurant in New York City behind ONE Dine on the 101st floor of One World Trade Center, and the Rainbow Room on the 65th floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza. With 1,966 rooms and over 100,000 sq ft (9,300 m²) of meeting space, it is the second largest hotel in the city, surpassed only by the New York Hilton Midtown.

The Marriott Marquis high-tech elevator system, supplied by Schindler, are famous in their own right for being one of the earliest installations of destination dispatch, which reduces travel time and improves efficiency by assigning passengers to elevator cars according to their destination floors.

Gallery

Looking up at the atrium  New York Marriott Marquis, circa 1999  Atrium View

References

Further reading

• Nash, Eric P., Jr. (1999). Manhattan Skyscrapers. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 1-56898-181-3. 

External links

• New York Marriott Marquis – Official Site
• New York Marriott Marquis Project Pages at John Portman & Associates web site
• International Herald Tribune on John Portman's hotels
• Christopher Reeve interview on the demolitions paving way for hotel
• The View restaurant