Reflecting on the fate of
Hyatt as it faces demolit
AT THE START OF 1981,
writer, Philip Jacobson,w
the hunt for an endanger
species – the Grand Hot.
was a title, he mused, thathad
been adopted by manyan
establishment that barely
qualified as a hotel, letalonea
grand one. From a yellowcab
onthe streets ofManhattan,he
d a few p nder
uction. T toadd
h-neede oms
Vista Internatio was
part of the Worl enter).
The most sp f the
new properties architecturally,
he wrote, was the GrandHyatt.
Located by Grand Centralstation,
the former Commodore
(est. 1919) had been shea
strikingglassandplastic
that r
and s
cantil
jutting
Times change, and the
1,298-room hotel is setfo
demolition next year. Itw
replaced by a US$3 billion
development that will includea
smaller Hyatt property,heralding
the end of this grand hotel.BT
APRIL 2020
OPINION
CHR