Anbang to convert Waldorf hotel into condo complex
Redevelopment of Chinese-owned site to cost more than US$1 billion
The Chinese owner of New York’s landmark Waldorf Astoria, Anbang Insurance Group Co, plans to close the hotel next spring to convert around two thirds of its 1,400 rooms into luxury private condominiums.
Still managed by Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc, the iconic art deco building will reopen with 300 to 500 hotel rooms remaining, according to a well-placed industry source.
Beijing-based Anbang confirmed in an emailed statement, it was “currently developing conceptual plans [for the building] and will share additional details once those are finalised”.
“We are still considering the next-step development for Waldorf,” it said.
Anbang bought the historic Waldorf for US$1.95 billion in 2014, a record price for a US hotel.
The planned spring closing was first reported on Sunday by the Wall Street Journal.
It claimed the vast reduction in hotel rooms would lead to the elimination of many room-service, housekeeping and other hospitality jobs among the Waldorf’s 1,500 staff.