NEW YORK—The New York Palace, a luxury midtown hotel, is beginning the first phase of a $120 million redesign with a $25 million makeover of its Towers accommodations. The New York Palace has employed two design firms to assist in this renovation: San Francisco-based design firm BAMO; who will redesign The Towers’ 176 guestrooms and suites as well as the new private reception experience; and New York-based design firm BBG-BBGM, who is renovating two of the hotel’s triplex suites and the new Metropolitan Suite.
The Towers is a separate and distinct part of The New York Palace, occupying the hotel’s top 14 floors. With a private reception area, accessible from the main lobby, The Towers come complete with a dedicated Les Clefs d’Or concierge team, exclusively for The Towers guests. Elevators transport guests to floors 41 through 53, which house accommodations with skyline views.
The private entranceway to The Towers lobby will expand in size and feature upgrades, such as art deco screens and warm lighting. The walls of the entranceway will feature silk and wood grain paneling. Elements of the lobby design will also harken back to the Villard Mansion design, with classical 19th century patterns echoing through the design of the brown carpeting and ceiling.
From the new lighting touches to the mix of materials and furniture, The Towers’ updated rooms and suites will invoke a residential feel. Pops of color will come from mixed media artwork that adorning the walls, selected by art advisor Nancy Sweeney. Strong geometric elements are emphasized on the furniture, carpet, and textiles in the renovated rooms.
Other highlights include the addition of rainshowers in many of the rooms, repurposed wood features over guestroom doors and valances, and sliding partition doors in The Tower Executive suites.
In addition to a rejuvenated look and feel, rooms in The Towers will also receive a technological and sustainability facelift with a combined effort from integrator Mode: Green and hotel technology consultants Enterprise Solutions Providers LLC. Crestron touch-screen user interfaces will control all of the room’s high-tech features. Rooms will also offer easily accessible electrical outlets, automated roman shades and blackout privacy curtains, iPod docking stations, television systems that can synch with computers or personal Netflix accounts, and full lighting controls. The combination of these technologies, including LED lighting and intelligent thermostats, also provides the hotel with behind-the-scenes energy management that creates zero impact on the overall guest experience. Beyond the room itself, guests will have access to an on screen menu of the hotel’s amenity offerings including spa appointments and in-room dining menus.
“The connectivity and functionality in The Towers rooms and suites has become just as important to our guests as their beauty,” said General Manager David Chase. “With this renovation, we have the opportunity to completely rethink how a hotel can serve its guests. The updated Towers are an extension of our guest’s homes and offices, allowing them to access all of the comforts and conveniences of each – with the addition of an exceptional view over midtown Manhattan.”
The Towers transformation will unfold in stages so as not to disrupt the guest experience. The rooms and suites are scheduled for completion in June 2013, with The Towers Lobby shortly following.
