CNY Builders tops out 43-story, 148,000 s/f Doubletree Hotel

Construction of 8 Stone St., a 43-story, 148,000 s/f Doubletree hotel with 399 rooms, has been topped out, according to Ken Colao, president of CNY Builders, which is the construction manager for the $72 million project on behalf of ABI and AL-Stone LLC. Construction of the hotel, which is located within the landmarked Stone Street Historical District, began in December of 2007. "Many of the project's challenges stemmed from its location," said Steve Colao, chief operating officer of CNY Builders. "The block is extremely narrow and highly trafficked, which created complicated site logistics," he said. "The project required particularly extensive coordination with New York City's Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center. We were constrained from using a standard tower crane pad foundation due to an existing active Con Ed steam line under the sidewalk on Stone Street. Other locations were even more problematic, due to the narrowness of the site and heights of the adjacent properties, so we ended up constructing a steel cantilevered crane pad, using the core shear walls and building foundation for support. In addition, both sidewalks were laden with underground utilities, causing the requirement from Con Ed to build the new transformer and bus vaults within the property line. "We've had many decades of working with all kinds of challenges, and we were pleased to be able to deal with them in a way that worked for our client," he said. Designed by Gene Kaufman Architect PC, the hotel features a limestone and curtainwall entrance, extensive custom stone and millwork in the lobby and public spaces, aluminum/glass windows and limestone flooring in guest bathrooms. Axis Design Group International LLC served as the project's structural engineer. The hotel is slated to open in the fourth quarter of 2010. "The topping out of 8 Stone St. is a sign of life in a slow market," says Ken Colao. "It's especially significant that the hotel is downtown, where development has stagnated recently."