Developer Steven Witkoff is holding off on his plans to redevelop Manhattan's beloved Park Lane Hotel into Central Park luxury condominiums at the moment. As it turns out, the owners are still talking about other options.
Witkoff, in an interview, said that the owners are looking into possibly renovating the existing 46-story hotel, located just at the foot of Central Park. He previously led a team to acquire the said property from Leona Helmsley's estate in 2013, for $660 million.
The deal includes several options for the new owners to choose from: demolishing the existing building, converting the building into a combination of condos and hotel rooms as well as continuing operations of the hotel.
Since the purchase, the appeal of building high-end residence has slowly diminished, given that new towers popping up around New York City are only targeted at multimillionaire buyers.
"The fact of the matter is, the velocity is not what it was," explained Witkoff, who is also partners with developer Harry Macklowe. "Because we have a cash flow, we have the flexibility to wait."
Plans for the Park Lane Hotel, located at 36 Central Park South, are slowly solidifying as Manhattan's luxury sales market points to an oversupply, following a construction surge after the recession. Bloomberg reports:
"The median sale price of all Manhattan home sales reached a record $1.15 million in the fourth quarter, propelled by closings of luxury deals in new developments that were agreed to years ago, when work was just starting on many of the properties, according to a report by appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate. Demand from wealthy buyers is waning as a slew of new units hits the market, according to Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel."
Miller claims that the developers behind Park Lane Hotel "are very experience and they see what's happening."
He continued, "One of the cornerstones of the initial explosion of demand was scarcity. The market has changed and developers that can take the long view are making changes now."
