Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 69, no. 1782: May 10, 1902

Text version:

M^ ioi i962. RECORD AND GUIDE. 847 of ita present ordinance from the city, which prohibits It from charging more than $48 per year for a business telephone, and $36 a year for a residence telephone. In explaining the measure before a meeting of the council on April 28, President Bouton of the company said that they bad found that contrary to al¬ most all other kinds of business, the operating expenses per tele¬ phone increase with the number of telephones in service, for the reason that as the number of telephones increases the .amount of use to which each telephone can be put Is cor¬ respondingly extended. He said that his company found the operating expenses per telephone of their Baltimore plant more than twice as much as the corresponding figure In other ex¬ changes in smaller towns. If the city will withdraw the present limit put on the telephone rates Mr. Bonton says that his com¬ pany will institute a graded schedule, so that as low a rate as possible may be extended to the small users of the telephone, and at the same time those who use the telephone heavily will be charged a much higher rate than at present. In brief, the company wishes to be relieved from its present low flat rates, and to be free to adopt the message rate plan of charging for service employed by the Bell companies in all large cities. Builders, read Wants and Offers. See page 850. The Present Status of the Apartment Hotel Renting. The activity which manifested itself last year in the building of apartment hotels has been completely eclipsed by the num¬ ber of plans flled with the Building Department during the first three months of 1902, In 1901 there were recorded plans for tbe building of forty-six hotels, to be erected at a total cost of $20,- 374,000, and of these all but six were apartment hotels. During the first four months of 1902 there have been flled plans for eighteen apartment hotels, to cost $6,690,000, as against ten in the corresponding time last year. This makes the apartment ho¬ tel loom up as an important factor in New Tork City building, and raises the question in one's mind whether or not there is too much building in a line of real estate investment which has yet to demonstrate its real value. A canvass of the projected buildings shows tbat in most cases operations are being pushed rapidly with the purpose of being in readiness for the opening of the fall renting season, while a number of the apartment hotels are already partially or com¬ pletely filled with tenants. The location of these hotels ranges from as far down town as Waverly place to TSth street, and from 7th to Madison avenues. Those already occupied or ready for occupancy are: The Marlton Apartment Hotel, 3 West Sth street; the Eamon, 338 West 57th street; the Hotel Quentin, 208 West 56th street; the Portland, 129 West 46th street and 132 West 47th street; 13 and 15 East 48th street, which Is to be oc¬ cupied almost wholly by members of the Union Club; the Unl- .versify, 106 West 47tb street, and The Collingwood, 43 West 35th street. The progress of the remainder toward completion Is; The Le¬ onori, on the northwest corner of Amsterdam avenue and 79th street, ready July 1st; 35 Madison avenue, not started; 154 West 47th street, ready about October 1st; 12 West 47th street, ready in about two months; 122 West 49th street, two stories erected; 20th street and Grammercy Park, erected to the fifth story; 144 West 49th street, nearly completed; 118 West 57th street, old building not yet torn down; 120 West 57th street, iron work fln ished and walls within two stories of top; 211 West 54th street, iron work up nine stories, walls, six; southwest corner Broad¬ way and 67th street, foundation laid; Hotel St. Regis, southwest corner Sth avenue and 55th street, finishing Inside; 110 West 72d street, "The Hargrave," finishing inside; southwest corner Broadway and 77th street, six and a half stories; 103 Waverly place, about to start building; 24 West 45th street, finishing in¬ side;'44 West 45th street, iron work flve stories, walls three; 11 East 32d street, old building still standing; 164 "West 74th street, ready for fall rental; 90-94 Madison avenue, iron work twelve stories, walls five; northwest corner Madison avenue and 27th street, building just commenced, and 206 West 43d street, walls eight stories, iron work nine. It will be seen that at the opening of the fall renting season there will probably be at least sixteen apartment hotels, aver¬ aging considerably more than fifty apartments each, ready for patrons. Whether or not there will be sufficient demand to fill them is, of course, somewhat problematical. It seems to be the general rule, at any rate, that owners have had no trouble in finding desirable lessees, who assumefh'eir share of the respon¬ sibility and risk of the venture. The fundamental idea of the apartment hotel, as explained by Edward Solomons, lessee of the Hotel Quentin, 218 West 56th street, is the doing away with the servant question. "We offer here," he said, "suites of from one to six rooms each, un¬ furnished, at a cost of from $450 to $3,000 a year, iffcluding all the combined conveniences of the hotel and apartment house, such as elevator, rstaurant, service of meals in one's apartments. *ell-boys, servants, etc. The suites are arranged in such a way as to give as perfect privacy as can be obtained in an apartment Jiouse." JEbis is the plan which Is generally followed, and similar rents •are charged. There Is, however, .no set rule. For instance, "The Eamon," 338 West 57th street, which is manag^ed by a -woman, Mrs. Judith Whittler, furnishes the apartments when It is de¬ sired at an advance per month of about $10 a room, and makes boarding obligatory. Still another plan is that followed by A. W. Eager, proprietor of the Hotel Wellington. 809 7th avenue, where there can be found the apartment hotel accommodations with those of the transient and family hotel as well. It has been found in nearly every case that while monthly rentals may be made untii October 1st, after that tenants are taken only on a yearly lease. Notwithstanding the dullness of the season from a renting standpoint, proprietors of those apartment hotels which are on the verge of readiness or are actually ready for tenants report more or less demand for accommodations. Wm. F. Bang, pro¬ prietor of "The Collingwood," which has been completed one month, reports that half of his suites are occupied and that he expects the remainder to be leased within the coming two months. C. L. Leonori, proprietor of "The University," 106 West 4Tth street, which was completed a year ago, and of "The Leonori," on 79th street and Amsterdam avenue, says the former his been fully occupied for a considerable time, while inquiries enough have been received of the latter, which will be com¬ pleted by July 1st, to lead him to believe that there will be no trouble about its rental In the fall. That portion of "The Port¬ land." on 47th street, which has been ready for occupancy since October last, is filled, and no difficulty Is apprehended in renting the new^ building which bas been erected at its rear on 46th street. On the other hand, it is stated on good authority that the proprietor, E, E. Champion, has made arrangements to man¬ age two new apartment hotels to be erected immediately oppo¬ site on 47th street. "The Eamon," 338 West o7th street, has been ready since April 1st, and one-half of the 56 apartments are rented. The Hotel Quentin, 208 West 56th street, 65 apartments, bas been ready about one month and is one-third rented. The suites range in size from one to six rooms. The Marlton Apart¬ ment Hotel, at 3 West Stb street, is reported by its manager to have 22 of its 57 suites rented. It will be seen that of the apartment hotels which have come on the market this spring none is less than one-third nor is any more than two-thirds rented. This, however, is of httle value in computing the prospects of fall renting, as the spring demand cannot be taken as a sufficient test. % % Public Hearings. STREET NUMBERS—BAT WINDOWS—ELEVATOR SHAFTS. A public hearing was held yesterday afternoon before the Aldermanic Committee on Buildings on proposed ordinances for the following purposes: 1. To compel owners or lessees of buildings to affix numbers to the buildings owned or leased by them; the numbers to be at least two inches high, on a plate located to the right of the entrance, where practicable, and to readily discernible night and day, etc. 2. To provide for the issuing of permits for the erection of bay windows, show windows, oriel windows, etc., requiring the payment cf a fee for tbe privilege of erecting same, at the rate of two dollars ($2.00) per square foot, per floor, for the Borough of Manhattan, one and one-half dollars ($1,50) for tbe Boroughs of Brooklyn and The Bronx, and one dollar ($1.00) for the Boroughs of Richmond and Queens. Also restricting the projection in certain portions of the city, and re¬ quiring the consent of adjoining property-owners before a permit shall be issued, etc. 3. To amend Seclion 96 of the Building Code in regard to the en¬ closing walls of elevator shafts, allowing the use of fireproof partitions in all non-fireproof buildings in place of brick walls, except in non- fireproof warehouses aud factories over flve stories high. The first of these led to quite an animated discussion. Eepre- sentatives of the West End Association, while agreeing that in all cases owners should be compelled to properly number their houses, maintained that to force owners of houses already plainly marked to follow the plan suggested would be unnecessary and unfair. Mr. Spencer suggested tbat some latitude be given in the matter of location and raaterial for the sign. He favored having the president of each borough take the supervision and determine the material and location for each sign, subject to the approval of tbe Art Commission. This plan was endorsed by representatives of several associations of property-owners pres¬ ent. Alderman Goodman, tbe introducer of the measure, made a vigorous plea in favor of its adoption. He expressed his will- -ingness to have it altered in any desirable way. Another hearing -is to be granted, time for such hearing to be announced later." , Albert Seaman and Richard Deeves appeared before the com¬ mittee to urge a slight modiflcation In the ordinance relating to bay, show and oriel windows, to the effect that in the case of such windows already existing it shall not be necessary to secure from the adjacent property-owners permission to replace the same, provided that their dimensions be not increased. This suggestion was taken under advisement by the committee and will probably be incorporated in the ordinance. N"o Opposition was manifested to the proposed amendment to Section 96 of the Building Code. The opinion of those present very strongly favored some lighter form of construction for elevator shafts than that now required in the class of structure's affected by the existing te.^*'. j , ; ii 1 1