NEW YORK I think it s extremely difficult to justify adding to the Javitz Center, said John Fox today at PKF Consulting s ninth annual State of the Lodging Industry report held at the Cornell Club. We can t accommodate the conventions we get now. I know it s chicken and egg, [but]there probably aren t enough hotels right now, for the near term, to justify an addition.
Fox s comments were a departure from an otherwise optimistic assessment of the New York City lodging market. With 2000 occupancy at 83.5% across service sectors, and average room rates of $240/night, Fox marveled at the highest rates ever, close to the highest occupancy even, and all of this is in the midst of the biggest increase in supply in years.
I m as bullish as I ve ever been [on Manhattan], Fox said in conclusion. I don t see anything on the horizon to bother me. (10/3/00) Jay Nussbaum