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Manhattan Community Board Five
Request for a hotel loading zone at 9 West 26th Street between Avenue of the Americas and Broadway
WHEREAS, the Flatiron Hotel, a new 64-room hotel at 9 West 26th St. at the corner of 26th and Broadway, seeks a hotel loading zone, and
WHEREAS, the Department of Transportation automatically designates loading zones for hotels with more than 99 rooms but requires a Community Board resolution to approve loading zones for hotels with fewer rooms, and
WHEREAS, a recent redesign of Broadway makes it impractical to locate a loading zone on the Broadway side of the Hotel, and
WHEREAS, the block of West 26th between Avenue of the Americas and Broadway has sufficient width to support a loading zone but is already heavily trafficked and congested, due to the following:
1) West 26th bears extra east-bound traffic because West 24th St. is interrupted by Madison Square Park, and
2) The intersection of 26th St. and Broadway sits very close to the intersection of 26th St. and 5th Ave., causing traffic to back up, and
3) The block is a mixed use block, with metered commercial parking during the day, many residents parking at night and many clubs and bars in the area causing a lot of pedestrian and street traffic in the evenings, and
4) The block suffers significant congestion at night when garbage trucks double-park directly across the street from the Hotel, and
WHEREAS, the Department of Transportation has already granted Loading Zones to at least three smaller hotels in the neighborhood, including:
1) Hotel Giraffe, 365 Park Avenue South, 72 rooms;
2) Hotel Mave, 62 Madison Avenue, 72 rooms; and
3) City Club Hotel, 55 West 44th Street, 65 rooms.
WHEREAS, having hotel patrons load and unload from double-parked cars and taxis would further exacerbate the existing traffic problems and create a safety hazard, and
WHEREAS, these concerns could be substantially addressed by granting the Hotel a two-space hotel loading zone by the entrance at 9 West 26th St., and
WHEREAS, the Flatiron Hotel has agreed to monitor the loading zone to ensure proper usage, and
WHEREAS, such a loading zone can be located more than 15 feet from the nearest hydrant, BE IT
RESOLVED, that Community Board Five recommends approval of the request that the New York City Department of Transportation grant a two-space Hotel Loading Zone to the Flatiron Hotel at 9 West 26th St. on the north side of West 26th St. directly in front of the hotel entrance at least 15 feet from the nearest hydrant and that the Hotel owners will monitor usage of the Loading Zone to ensure that it is not used other than for pick-up and drop-off of guests at the Hotel.
The above resolution passed with a vote of 33 in favor, 1 opposed, 1 abstaining.