The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-02-28
Once Highly Desirable Dwelling, Club
and Hotel Section Now Entirely
. Given to Trade

The Albemarle Hotel and the Hof-
man Hous AT tie ,rthwet corner (
Broa ay a d Twenty our Il s'r -
cold last ee q a 81 . 'or q tall o..
building. means the end of Madison
Square a. q hotel sect ton, q pceition 1t
he.d undsput d for man yea q Il
must be rene IlberSl NJ ison SOU r,
had been identified with hotels when
9TH r TART of n " York far south II
Twenty-third ct had OF felt I a
ND Of tho bu tder. MAIDS n Cot e,
lowered he property nov the site Of
the Fifth Avenue Building about a
century ago. So tho last Of the Afbe-
marie an HOFFMAN Hous separate
the sect.ol from a Nusines hfoh l.
10 known in . he ct was . we'
BIT OF a town
sent men,al folks will OBJECT to the
pass. ny Of the Cd A,b"marle. which
Ia. stond for fifty nve yam at
Twenty-fourth street. Inc the ntw
Hoffman ncXt door. They did when
tn, Bru"sR.sk. the c. oslo. the Frh
Avenu nd C e VI rtin went d l"n
60 make way for structures wh'ch
woul pr q e me- AT eri a. q Giles
for their over han If tn propett ties
we @ let II h. ~ mitlve 4
v'h.ch Is @ n o r m r bu Id 20
not lus nts , ructpr q In { II Ugh
bod hood. nov and for many years
past
TIL wi - Of h public In su h
mat ofc r"vc- correct and eu'i.-s
rer,i! "a each nttent on 20 t'en.
NJ. nm GY-,ar q ofsgHA FeDr q
hott' club 1s' r sidentail section into
n ha n,.. l..Ii' Us a. 4 -.ta.l
snnc. sa vi q. lie 'r de n -.
TIL ha ." from e - T. VIII al
tauic wi h mo en- n, O. dep rt-
meut II q he vic.rtv orth 10
Fiith ave7ur and other sections. The
chan. rom a resid ntia, came prob
Ably tY'ntv-hve years @ when Madi-
TO- Square Garden was constructed.
IL , He monumf nj OF arch.tec-
tur.l heautv. few who witnessed the
bpeu.r in 1890 Of the big building
r'a'i2 i nc. L was the %beg!r-'-~ Z
Al 80 % arts o~-ati' NJ d son
Ecrare ~ ~ hotel o, tho fine gentry
Of tn Tow for years and years: the
horne and stopping place OF the hest
Fertry of other towns and cities
MI. ugh vt tho length and breadth OF
tho wor'd for New York's best hotels
were in Madison Square,
The popularity that came to the
Cal n had much to do w!ta the .oca-
tion n Ma"!ror Square Of the Metro
po'itln TFe Insurance Company. In
sur"ncs c~or'-an'es reed publicity and
the Metropo'itan's officers deemed IL
Ala. - -, =. hn,.a Atxts Ana
quar crs close to a building which was
% widely known.
A building was erected covering the
entire book from Twenty-third to
Twenty-foirth street, from Madison
to Fourth avenue. with the exception
of the corner Of Madison avenue and
Twcnty-foucth street, where Dir. Park
bursts former church stood. The
building was the second TO go up in
Madison Square. Its coming among
fine b~rownitone dwellings was BY no
means pleasing and the ncighborhocd
did everything TO show itr disapproval.
The greatness nf the Metropolitan
office building did not arouse their in
rerest except AS to the future VI the
neighborhood.
Next came the Flatiron building.
.This WIS really the first speculative
operation IN the square. The building
was put NJ not "a an advertisement
but 20 produce money for it, wner
This structure more than the Metro
politan Building developed harsh
criticism for resident owner in the
section. Old Madison Square in their
eyes was doomed. The big houses
built AZ great cos and the cos!ners
which added charm and value to it
as a home s ction were threatened by
business .ntruders. The bitterness
toward trade, developed years before.
.w'aen residents werc forced 10 leave
st. Johns Park section. had not heen
lost.
Three large buildings had boon built
IN the square in the three years from
1890 to 1898. Nne were mistaken
in thor conclusions as to the rapid
development Of the section with tall
commercial. buildings, for after the
construction OF the Flatiron Building i,
was many years before builders were
again seen in the square Property
values w.rc entirely too high. A sec
ton which had been for years an
elite n .lahb rhood. hold q ne homes
of prominent men in every wax OF
liz, could hardly Re expect d to pro-
duce s,t"a suitable for successful. busi-
ness hu.!6 ng operations. so Mad on
Square wa overlooked for streets to
the north, south, east Il west, where
land values were far from those pre-
vailinr at the time in Madison Square.
Students OF real estate. however, did
not agree with the Madison Square
hotel man, clubman and house wncr
int ne square ad escaped the pest
He knew that the development ~ the
neighborhood with tall loft buildings
would reflect on Madison Squares real
estate in the long run, and so ii did,
After several years without annoy
ance the Brunswick Hoe, On the
north side az the saua"e, covering the
\ east side Of Fitth aNcnd from Twenty
sixth to Tp uty-s vcnth street.. ma
been remove 10 make way for a
any hotel that had ever been Planned
But the hotel was never built. A
hnancial disagreement between the
Of the land and the motel pro-
motors was given as the reason.
Although this might have been the
tru" reason for the backdown of the
ostat TO Il" n e the e otel % :
Act, u wss he ci anged ,ond ions
nea the square that provided the uc-
ituai reasons. A hotel locking out on
,loft buildings and surrounded by tn.
mum ot trade from morning until fan
into IL" night Was no place for q