NEW YORK— The Hotel Gansevoort, set to be the first property to debut in the city’s Meatpacking District, has finally broken ground in Lower Manhattan, signifying the rebirth of a project originally set to begin construction three days after 9/11. The year-long delay on the 187-room boutique project is directly attributable to the 9/11 attacks that rocked this neighborhood and caused an even more difficult lending environment in New York City, according to architect Stephen Jacobs of the Stephen B. Jacobs Group. “No one was talking about construction on September 14. The nation and the hotel industry went into shock after 9/11,” said Jacobs, noting the original bank for the project pulled out. Despite losing financial support, the hotel’s developers, William and Michael Achenbaum of WSA Management Ltd., remained committed to the project and eight months later were able to secure financing from an alternate source—Westdeutsche Landes’ NYC office. “I think it’s a very powerful statement for the New York City hotel industry,” said Jacobs. “The developer is taking an immense risk when not a lot of new projects are happening. I think it shows a tremendous vote of confidence for the city of New York and it’s travel industry.” The $60 million Hotel Gansevoort, created by Jacobs and his wife interior designer Andi Pepper, officially broke ground this September and is slated to open in the fall 2003. The project adds to the design duo’s growing hotel portfolio, which already includes the Library Hotel and the Hotel Giraffe — both in New York. Nestled on Ninth Ave. and 13th Street, in the now-trendy Meatpacking District, the posh hotel will add to the area’s eclectic mix of restaurants, shops, and luxury lofts— most emerging from abandoned factories. The Hotel Gansevoort will feature zinc-colored metal panels, glass-sheathed balconies, and projection bay windows, reminiscent of the Library Hotel’s bay window, which was “the motif used to design the [new]hotel,” he said. Guestrooms will offer a love seat nestled within the curve of the window that can be opened into a sleeper bed. Stemming from the bay window concept, much of the hotel’s look revolved around light and glass. The lobby will feature three illuminated glass columns, along with three “discs of seating groups”, which revolve around moving disc-shaped chandeliers, said Pepper. Additionally, the hotel will offer the Jacobs/Pepper signature rooftop, featuring a contemporary roof garden, hospitality suite with 20-foot ceilings, and a year-round 45-foot swimming pool with underwater music within an enclosed area.