The Driving Force Behind Westchester's Robust Hotel Industry
BY BILL FALLON
In 2018, 1.8 million hotel rooms were booked in Westchester County — enough for the entire city of Phoenix to come and stay the night. Government and private-sector veterans of the industry are charting a bold, new landscape: urbanized and vibrant. Current hotel bullishness involves efforts that are paying off after years of sweat equity. There are different fits for different venues — and Airbnb is a big player — but the ability for area hotels to host businesspersons, tourists, and events in a thriving community underpins much of today’s visions becoming reality. Of course, there are challenges, too.
Across its five years in business, the 130-room Cambria Hotel White Plains-Downtown has maintained a nearly 86% occupancy rate. Cambria general manager Sean Meade recently pointed out its sleek architecture and its status as a top-reviewed facility on TripAdvisor as advantages. (The hotel is operated by Danbury-based Meyer Jabara Hotels under license from Choice Hotels.) Its business is 60-70% corporate.
Besides managing Cambria, Meade is president of the Westchester County Hotel Association, headquartered in Port Chester, which represents 40 hotels, motels, and inns. Clearly, Meade has his finger on the pulse of the local industry. In the past, he says, hotels in Westchester, including the Cambria, benefited from New York City overflow — called “compression” in industry-speak.
Today, Meade notes, “Overdevelopment of new hotels in Manhattan is leading to decreasing compression in Westchester.” The increase of Airbnb stays is another major factor impacting the industry.
Meade, accompanied by John Ravitz, executive vice president and COO of the Business Council of Westchester and a former state Assembly member from Manhattan, has twice traveled to Albany to state the case for the association. “We’re here as a resource for the legislators,” Meade explains. “It’s nice for us to reach out and say, ‘If it affects the hospitality industry, we’re here to work with you.’ Legislation can have great intentions, but we’re able to ask our employees how these actions will affect them. We get that feedback and provide it.”
Meade’s organization charts a -2.2% current decline in revenue for 2019, with flat growth forecast for 2020. But that doesn't mean the industry isn’t an important economic engine for Westchester.
In Yonkers, the mayor’s office cites 1,050 active hotel rooms spread across marquee names that include Marriott and Hampton Inn, both of which have two Yonkers locations; Hyatt Place (at Cross County Center); Ramada; and boutique property Royal Regency Hotel. There are proposals for four additional hotels in town and talk beyond that of two more. Says Yonkers mayor Mike Spano: “We are especially happy to see hotels with national flags, like Hyatt, Hampton Inn, and Marriott. And it seems likely that MGM’s Empire City Casino might add a hotel.”
Those flags represent vital, sought-after puzzle pieces in a diversifying economy, Spano adds.
“This tells us there is a thirst for Yonkers — that our proximity to New York City and access to the Hudson Valley make it a viable option for those looking to work or visit the area,” he notes. “We continue to see interest in the hospitality sector, so we believe the market remains strong.”
The burgeoning county hotel list includes the Hilton Garden Inn in Dobbs Ferry, which opened in 2018; in Tuckahoe, a Marriott Springhill Suites opens later this year in Peekskill, The Abbey Inn & Spa opens January 2020; and New Rochelle has new hotels in its pipeline, as well.
The Abbey Inn & Spa’s GM, Gilbert Baeriswil, believes the market is on the upswing. “In the early 2000s, we were seeing a big influx of business from the Fortune 500 companies,” says Baeriswil, who previously managed the 31-room Castle Hotel & Spa in Tarrytown. “After the big market crash, there was an obvious decline. Now, I’d say we’re bouncing back. Cautiously.”