New York seeks proposals for new hotel or mixed-use development across from Javits Center

March 4, 2021

Photo by Ajay Suresh on Wikimedia

New York on Thursday issued a request for proposals for a Midtown West site located directly across from the Javits Center. Referred to as Site K, the parcel at 418 11th Avenue is one of the last remaining vacant lots in the area. In the RFP, the Empire State Development requests proposals that could be a commercial or mixed-use development, with interest made in hotels that are “complementary” to the neighboring convention center.


Site K, Courtesy of Empire State Development

Javits Center expansion, Governor Cuomo, FXFOWLE
Previous rendering of Javits expansion by Neoscape courtesy of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office

The Site K development is part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s larger effort to redevelop over 100 acres of Midtown West, a key part of his long-term agenda announced in January. The $51 billion plan includes replacing the Port Authority Bus Terminal, extending the High Line, creating 1,400 units of affordable housing, and building the Empire Station Complex, which would link an upgraded Penn Station, the newly opened Moynihan Train Hall, and a possible new terminal one block south of Penn Station.

The Javits Center is currently undergoing a $1.5 billion expansion that will add 1.2 million square feet of event space, expected to be completed sometime this year.

“From the opening of Moynihan Train Hall to the High Line expansion, we are creating a vibrant, transit-oriented Midtown West that is designed to fuel significant economic growth as we restart our state’s economy,” Cuomo said in a press release. “Site K will bring even more opportunities to this flourishing New York neighborhood, with improved transit, new outdoor spaces and affordable housing opportunities – a true testament to our commitment to build back better.”

Bounded by 35th and 36th Streets, and 11th Avenue and Hudson Boulevard West, Site K sits across from the Javits Center and is one block from the High Line, Hudson Yards, and the 7 subway line.

According to the RFP, respondents can propose either a commercial or mixed-use development with hotel uses that are complementary to the Javits Center “encouraged but not required.” Manhattan Community Board 4 has expressed the need for residential use at the site but is not a requirement.

Proposals with residential use must include 30 percent affordable units, designated for households earning between 80 and 130 percent of AMI.

Submissions are due by Thursday, May 6, 2021. Find the RFP and more information about the process on Empire State Development’s website here.

Last month, ESD’s Board of Directors adopted the General Project Plan (GPP) and certified the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed Empire Station Complex project. As 6sqft previously reported, the plan calls for the construction of 10 new buildings on eight sites in the surrounding area. A proposal to replace the Port Authority Bus Terminal released last month by the agency involves demolishing the existing bus station to make way for a larger, state-of-the-art terminal, and the construction of a four-story facility that would serve as a temporary bus terminal while the new terminal is under construction.

The bus project with $3 billion from the PANYNJ’s 2017-2026 capital plan, the sale of development rights from up to four nearby high-rise towers, and federal funding. Overall, the Port Authority’s replacement plan and the Empire Station Complex plan could result in 14 new towers in a stretch of Midtown West.

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