Audubon Hotel Breaks Ground in Washington Heights

A former parking lot on West 168th Street is not really worth checking out the way it looks now. But soon people will be checking in, when a hotel stands there. Several elected officials and community leaders gathered on July 30 to celebrate a groundbreaking for Washington Heights' first hotel. The $25 million project signals a new kind of development for the area. 

Moinian Group is building the hotel on a parking lot, located at 514 West 168th Street, between Amsterdam and Audubon Avenues.

The 54-room hotel will cater to the medical community and accommodate families of patients in hospitals on the nearby New York Presbyterian campus.

Construction of the project is expected to last 16 months. When it is completed, the 40,000 square-foot hotel will feature 11 floors and 54 rooms. 15,000 square feet will be dedicated to medical offices.

A permanent name has been chosen for the property, tentatively called The Audubon.

The developer is in currently in negotiation with a major chain to operate the hotel at a three-star level, comparable to a Courtyard by Marriott.

The hotel will be only the second hotel to be built north of 110th Street and is expected to be completed in late 2014 or early 2015.

Moinian Group expects the project to create 50 construction jobs and 25 permanent jobs.