Commercial Conversion Pays Off For NY's Avalon Hotel

<B> Commercial Conversion Pays Off For NY's Avalon Hotel</B>

By Cheryl Rosen

Riding the wave of demand into the Manhattan hotel market, the new Avalon Hotel on East 32nd Street already is running at 65 percent occupancy, even though its official opening is not scheduled until October.

Avalon general manager, Daniel Melendez, attributes the word-of-mouth success of The Avalon's soft opening to its small size, homey feel and midtown location. "People want to stay in intimate properties, to experience something more personal, particularly when they are in a big city," he said. "They find New York overwhelming, and they don't want to stay in a hotel where they can't even find an elevator."

In fact, though, the Avalon's appearance as Manhattan's newest midtown hotel owes much to serendipity. It is the first commercial building in Manhattan ever to be converted into a hotel. "The building was on the same block as the Stanford, which is owned by the same people who own us, and they got a great rate on it," said Melendez. "Because it was an office building, all the rooms were very long, so we put in spacious bathrooms and sitting rooms. We took the original plan, which was to make it a higher-end property, put a little more into it and made it a boutique."

The Avalon features 100 units, of which only 20 are regular bedrooms; the other 80 are suites and junior suites. Its current meeting space, consisting of a single board room that holds ten, soon also will include a second floor that is being converted into meeting and conference space.

A 75-seat restaurant and a fitness center will open later this year.

Rack rates run from $215 to $600 a night, including complimentary continental breakfast and afternoon tea. As an introductory special for the corporate market, the hotel is offering the $250 junior suite, which includes a queen bed or two doubles, plus a sitting area with a sofa bed, for $199, single or double occupancy.