The Real Deal
By Kathryn Brenzel
09.26.2017
Hotel developers in manufacturing zones are facing a new challenge
The city is moving forward with a zoning change that seeks to curb hotel development in areas zoned for light manufacturing.
The proposed zoning change would require developers seeking to build hotels in M1 zones to go through a special permitting process, according to a Department of City Planning proposal cited by New York YIMBY.
According to the city, the supply of hotel rooms is set to outpace demand. By 2028, 154,000 rooms are expected to be open in the city, and the department projects this will yield a surplus of 9,000 rooms. At last count, in 2016, the city had 116,000 rooms across more than 600 hotels.
There’s also, of course, the rising threat of Airbnb as a serious competitor to hotels. As part of its proposal to change zoning rules in the Garment District, the city’s Economic Development Corp. included a provision to require special permits for hotel development. That zoning change, however, has been temporarily postponed.