Across from Grand Central Terminal, the legendary Biltmore Hotel once served as a grand place for the Jazz Age-elite to rest their heads. Now, the structure is being reimagined as a major Midtown technology hub.
After opening in 1913, the Biltmore eventually closed in 1981. The building was gutted, and eventually came to house the Roosevelt Hotel. Currently, landlord Milstein Properties and Grand Central Tech are joining forces to serve up yet another facelift in this testament to history and architecture.
Milstein Properties has owned the building since the Biltmore’s closure. Grand Central Tech, whose headquarters are actually situated within office space in the property, has served as an incubator for multi-million-dollar startups like Common, Maven and Exec Thread.
According to reports from Bloomberg, more than $100 million is being invested in the project to transform the old hotel into a high-tech incubator.
Presently, 150,000 square feet of the space will be reserved for retail and amenities, while 250,000 square feet will go to startups, and 700,000 square feet will be offered up to corporate tenants.
Some question whether the building’s Midtown location will be able to attract major tech companies, as Manhattan’s Chelsea and SoHo neighborhoods have decidedly established themselves as the city’s most tech-friendly hotspots, even earning the nickname “Silicon Alley."
Yet the area around Grand Central Station has developed into a business hub in its own right. Major companies like Bloomberg and Salesforce have large-scale offices nearby; several WeWork locations pepper the area; and it’s worth mentioning that Grand Central Station itself opens up the area to commuters from New York City and beyond.
Presently, there are no publicly available details with regards to tenants or an opening date of the space.
