The 12th-tallest building on our annual construction countdown is Hotel Meta, a 642-foot-tall hotel at 450 Eleventh Avenue in Hudson Yards. Designed by DSM Design Group and developed by Marx Development Group, the 51-story structure will yield 379 guest rooms and amenities including a business center, a ballroom, banquet and conference spaces, a spa, fitness center, and a multi-level restaurant with a bar and outdoor terrace. The property will be operated by Marriott Hotels and is located at the corner of West 37th Street and Eleventh Avenue, directly across from the Jacob K. Javits Center.
Work has concluded on the blank southern and eastern walls since our last update in late May, when crews were in the process of treating the surface in preparation for the installation of the EIFS panels. Recent photographs show these faces fully enclosed in their charcoal paneling, which gives the tower an ominous impression when viewed from Midtown. The extensive use of windowless surfaces is presumably due to the expectation that subsequent high-rise developments will eventually closely abut the tower on these sides.
The construction hoist was also recently dismantled from the western elevation along Eleventh Avenue, and metal clips are in place to support the final set of angled window panels. The envelope is composed of both a curtain wall and window wall, and includes black soffits on the underside of the protruding edges. Glass railings have been installed on the podium’s rooftop and the lower-level terrace, and work is also nearing completion on the ground floor.
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Below is an aerial perspective of the windowless sides of 450 Eleventh Avenue from early December, when the hoist was in the process of disassembly.
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Photo by Michael Young
Marx Development Group secured $185 million in refinancing this spring, including an $89 million senior loan from Madison Realty Capital, a $44 million mezzanine loan from Cerberus Capital Management, and EB-5 financing. Prior to this, the hotel was planned to open under the Aloft branding.
The nearest subway from the property is the 7 train at the 34th Street-Hudson Yards station to the south at Bella Abzug Park.
A revised completion date has not been announced, though sometime in early 2025 seems likely.
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Window cleaning might be difficult.
Kvetching about the parti wall in 3… 2… 1…
Two beautiful sides and two blank walls. Hope the other building get built soon.
That is one unattractive building.
The original design was much more impressive with the windows being even more varied. And yes, the blank walls are unfortunate.
Those “unfortunate” blank walls are lot line walls. They will be hidden from view when new buildings get built around the hotel
When even YIMBY says the blank southern and eastern walls here look “ominous”, you better believe it..
There is absolutely zero chance this building will be open in 2025. Marx Development and Atria don’t pay their subcontractors for months at a time, they walk away, then they pay them a fortune to come back. This was supposed to be done in 2023 but now 2026 even seems like a stretch.
I was thinking the same thing. Was’t this building supposed to be done a while ago.
Do you have inside knowledge of the developers payments?
Yes I do have inside knowledge. Besides being corrupt and incompetent, Marx also just took a loan from Madison Capital, well known as the lender of last resort in NYC. Basically one notch above dealing with the mob.
This building’s backstory is murky AF. Lots of architect/developer shenanigans going back to 2016. Many work stoppages and lulls in construction as well as rebrandings and ownership changes. Doesn’t bode well for that 2025 opening.
Interesting. While the blank side of this building look atrocious, the rest of this building looks a little funky in a good way. I’m sure that with the other buildings this will look like even better. Just wish to see the rendering of the other buildings.
The blank walls are a gigantic middle finger to anyone looking from the south or east. I get buildings may someday be buillt nearby but the developer and architect should be ashamed of how they handled the interim condition.It looks like a giant incinerator smokestack from anywhere in HY.
The developer missed the mark by deciding to SLAB OVER the Eastern and Southern exposures for more NATURAL daylight, as well as better views! I don’t expect those adjacent properties will be developed for YEARS?!
Maybe they could be covered by a giant mural or let the graffiti artist who tagged 181 Maiden Lane have a crack at it?!
The interior construction has only progressed about a 1/3 of the building and stopped about 4 to 6 months ago. It’s pretty much a ghost town at that construction site. At the current pace, first day of business may be late 2025/ early 2026.
Also, the word “ominous” is being too kind. The east and south facades are downright creepy at night. Picture the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey but much larger and not as cool!
While you’re all clutching your pearls, might I ask what difference this EFIS wall makes in your actual life? Simmer down, and Merry Xmas!
The owners could introduce a challenge to local and national artists to paint a temporary mural on the blank face, using the abundance of media available today. Making the challenge big enough to provide exposure to property and future developments.
It looked scary and I’m sure that I saw it, although this structure is operated by Marriott Hotels: Thanks.
Marriott has backed out of this project because of the scandal of the architectural fraud and the incompetence of Marx to get it built.
It looks like a lot of shanty town wooden houses stacked on top of each other, with none matching or fitting the other. Just looking different doesnt mean looking good. This looks different, but shanty town ugly
It looks like the lower East side in the 19th century.. Just a slum!
Read-
How the Other Half Lives: Studies Among the Tenements of New York
By Jacob A. Riis
Meh.