Allen/Pike Street Corridor to Receive Another Hotel

It’s a question we’ve been pondering for years. How many hotels does one neighborhood truly need? Orchard Street fell victim to the trend, notching seven “boutique” inns from top to bottom (though, most are stalled). Pike is next in line to the throne, so to speak, with a third new development in as many years. Look no further than the corner of Madison Street.

The one-story box o’ bricks at 154 Madison, formerly a Chinese auto mechanic and car lot, was razed earlier this summer and quickly replaced with plywood fencing. Last week we popped by and watched earthmoving in effect – preparations for a hotel onsite are now underway. DOB materials reveal that the two-lot parcel received zoning approval back in mid-June for a seven-story mixed use building with both lodging and “community facilities.”

And the architect behind the latest lodge? None other than Jung Wor Chin, known on the east side of the tracks for the recently-completed 2 Allen commercial center and Gertel’s-killer 55 Hester.

The new kid on the block will hang tough with the big boys in its midst. After the Hong Kong Supermarket fire leveled the corner of Pike and East Broadway, Marriott took the initiative to build a Fairfield Inn on the spot. One block north, rival hotelier Howard Johnson followed suit with its own finger building, itself set to open later this month.