New York City

The 187-room Hotel Gansevoort recently opened in New York's newly hip Meatpacking District. Design elements include a signature rooftop with a heated, glass-surrounded pool with underwater music. The 13-floor building is clad with striking zinc-colored metal panes, glass-sheathed balconies, and projecting bay windows. The hotel's entrance on cobblestoned Ninth Avenue features 18-foot internally illuminated glass columns and a 14-foot-high revolving door. Recalling the canopies of early 20th century meatpacking buildings, the hotel's extensive canopy wraps around the corner to Thirteenth Street.

The double-height lobby includes intimate seating nooks for relaxing and socializing, plus dedicated reception and concierge areas. Lobby ceiling lights move up and down and change color to create moods that vary with the time of day. A playful use of textures such as eel-skin columns, mohair panels, and leather and velvet accents creates a sleek yet comfortable area.

Sophisticated and minimalist, the guest rooms feature a color palette of neutrals and grays splashed with blackberry. Dramatic sheets of backlit translucent glass in muted colors take the place of conventional doors.

Contact: Hotel Gansevoort, 18 Ninth Ave., New York, NY 10014; (212) 206-6700; www.hotelgansevoort.com.

COPYRIGHT 2004 World Publishing, Co. (Illinois)
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group