Plaza Hotel
From ArticleWorld
The Plaza Hotel is located in the heart of Manhattan in New York City. This 19 storey structure located on Fifth Avenue is close to the best that the city of New York has to offer. The Design District, Madison Square Garden, the trendy Fashion District, Macys Department Store and the Empire State Building are all within walking distance from the Hotel.
The Plaza is surrounded by beauty and history on all its sides. It stands at the corner of an important square and its main entrance faces the southern portion of the Grand Army Plaza. Right in front of the Hotel, in the centre, is the Pulitzer Fountain built by the sculptor Karl Bitter and funded with the money from the will of newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer. The grandest of the Fifth Avenue mansions, a French Renaissance chateau once stood on the south side of the Plaza Hotel, between 57th and 58th Streets.
History
Designed by Henry J. Hardenbergh in French renaissance style, the Plaza opened its doors to the public on 1st October, 1907. Among its original residents were the members of the Gould, Harriman and Vanderbilt families. An earlier Plaza hotel opened at this location in 1890 but was demolished in 1905 to make way for the present structure.
The hotel closed in April 2005 for renovations and is scheduled to reopen in late 2006 or early 2007 with 348 rooms, the Palm Court, Oak Bar and Grand Ballroom open for public use.
Nuggets
- Plaza is the second hotel of that name on the same site.
- It was accorded the Landmark Status by the NY City’s Landmark Commission in 1969.
- It has been featured in many movies and also has been the setting for many T.V. Shows.