New York Marriott Marquis

New York Marriott Marquis
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Hotel chain	Marriott Corporation
General information
Architectural style	Brutalist
Location	United States
Address	1535 Broadway, New York City
Coordinates
Opening	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
Parking	US$60–$85 daily
Website
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/nycmq-new-york-marriott-marquis/
New York Marriott Marquis at CTBUH Skyscraper Database

New York Marriott Marquis is a Marriott International hotel at 1535 Broadway opened in 1985 and was designed by architect John Portman. It is located on Times Square at Broadway and 45th Street. The hotel is famous for its high-tech elevators and atrium lobby rising 45 stories to "The View", New York's only rooftop revolving restaurant and lounge. With 1,949 rooms and over 100,000 sq ft (9,300 m²) of meeting space, it is one of the largest hotels in the city. The Marquis Theatre is located within the hotel at the 3rd floor.

Creation

The hotel was born in controversy because five historic theaters—the Helen Hayes, the Morosco, the Astor, the Bijou, and the Gaiety—were demolished to clear the site. Protesters, including Christopher Reeve (then at the height of his Superman fame) tried to stop the destruction, even forcing a Supreme Court challenge, but it was too late. What was dubbed "The Great Theater Massacre of 1982" went forward to make way for the hotel. The Marquis was approved for construction but with the requirement that a new theater (now the Marquis Theater) be built on the same site. By the time construction began, the original operators Western International Hotels (today Westin) had dropped out of the project and Marriott had stepped in.

The hotel has been criticized for turning its back to Times Square. However, at the time the hotel was built, Times Square was only beginning to turn around. With the still-seedy character of Times Square, Portman's style of inwardly-oriented spaces made logical sense. The present redevelopment of Times Square as an urban destination point has left the Marriott Marquis detached from the street. However, the Marriott was the first major project in the Times Square revitalization, and has been credited as the starting point for today's development node at Times Square.

At the time the hotel was built, it featured Manhattan's largest grand ballroom and its first revolving restaurant, a three-story, 1,500-seat theater, a second and third ballroom, and 100,000 square feet (9,300 m²) of meeting, banquet and exhibition spaces.

Gallery

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

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

Preceded by Park Central Hotel

Venues of the NFL Draft 1986-1994

Succeeded by The Theatre at Madison Square Garden