Long-Stalled Canal Street Development Rebranded ‘Canal Loft Hotel’

It’s been over five years since we last checked in with the struggling Canal Tower project at 86 Canal Street. And, unbelievably, not much has transpired here in the interim. Progress in recent times has been limited to installation of balconies and a staging area for materials on the ground floor.

Despite plans to the contrary, the Canal Tower won’t offer residential living at all. Rather, it’s been reborn as a hotel. Yes, seriously. It’s called the Canal Loft Hotel, and probably targets the constant horde of bus travelers arriving/departing the area. (It also joins the Leon Hotel and Hotel 50 Bowery within a few blocks.)

Signage arrived onsite last week.

As previously reported, the Canal Tower condo project had previously promised 83 luxury units and plenty of commercial space for delivery in December 2013. Right on time.

Instead, the Canal Loft Hotel is here. Below is the rather strange pitch, which relies on Ground Zero and Bloomingdale’s as selling points. Rooms apparently start at $134 per night.

Boasting a shared lounge, Canal Loft Hotel is situated in New York in the New York State region, an 11-minute walk from Bloomingdales. Around 1.2 km from Brooklyn Bridge, the property is also 1.6 km away from Ground Zero and offers free WiFi. The property is a 20-minute walk from One World Trade Center.

Speaking English and Spanish at the 24-hour front desk, staff are willing to help at any time of the day.

National September 11 Memorial & Museum is 1.7 km from the hotel. LaGuardia Airport is 12 km away.

You’ll recall that controversial landlord Baruch Singer acquired 86 Canal in 2007 for $20.5 million, and promptly razed the five-floored tenement. His grand plan was a sixteen-story nightmare. Thanks to a terrible economic downturn, those dreams were not realized, and he sold the property (at a loss) to Queens-based Wing Fung Realty Group in 2010 for $16.5 million.