Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

Because clearly there aren't enough hotels in NYC to satisfy the swarms of tourists looking to spend $500 a night on a room, Ian Schrager is building another one. And it's not going to be a plain, old five-star hotel either. Schrager is planning to convert 1414 Avenue of the Americas—currently an office building—into a "six-star" property, a designation that technically doesn't even exist in the hotel world, but is used from time to time anyway. (That's how Dubai's ridiculously over-the-top Burj Al-Arab describes itself, for example.) It's good to see Schrager is finding inspiration in his former hotel company's current ad slogan. And at least he won't have to worry about evicting the tenant on the ground floor as part of the renovation process: Jeffrey Chodorow's ode to the last boom, Kobe Club, closed last month. You see, sometimes the recession comes in handy! [NYP]

We honestly can't remember the last time we heard anyone use "Tommy Hilfiger" and "popular" in the same sentence. But maybe we're just talking to the wrong people. Tommy seems to think his brand is very quite popular, and it's nice to hear that someone has a healthy sense of self-esteem, particularly since so many people are down in the dumps these days. At the after-party for the new Jennifer Aniston movie Management the other night, Tommy explained to WWD that he's now in the "conceptual stage" of building his own chain of Hilfiger-branded hotels. Where will his first property be located? "We like America but we have great popularity all over the world," he explained. "I think we could put a hotel up in just about any major city." Which is true! At least if by "city," Tommy means "suburban strip mall with a McDonald's on one end and a Marshalls on the other." [WWD]

The Creepiest Hotel Suite in Town | Whether this is a draw or a drawback is up to you, but guests who book the 46th-floor penthouse suite at the Helmsley Park Lane gain access to many of Leona Helmsley's old "personal belongings," including her "king-size bed with satin covers," "lacquered dining room table and crystal chandeliers," and the salon chair that Frédéric Fekkai once used to style "her trademark short brown hair." Access to her private swimming pool isn't part of the package, alas, although hotel employees do say they've "spruced" up the place, which is nice to hear since they also point out she went through about five packs of cigarettes a day when she lived there. [NYDN]

The Hotel Manager With Groupies | Real Househusband Simon van Kempen doesn't spend all of his time shopping for pink pants and planning off-season trips to St. Barts. He's also the general manager of the crummy Hotel Chandler in Murray Hill, of course. So who actually stays at the hotel that Simon claims has an occupancy rate of 96 percent since "conspicuous consumption is out of favor at the moment"? The usual suspects, like "screenwriters and actors taking advantage of discounts offered to folks in the entertainment industry," as well as die-hard Real Housewives fans, some of whom have "refused to check out until they get my autograph or photograph." And who could blame them? [Chicago Sun-Times]

The Building Will Go On | And you thought we were in the middle of a recession! Notwithstanding the fact that existing hotels are having a very difficult time filling rooms—your wealthy uncle can now stay at the Ritz Carlton for less than $300 a night—a company just filed plans to construct a 19-story hotel on Ann Street in Lower Manhattan. Bravo, "107 W Broadway Realty Corp." We salute you for your courage and confidence. [NYO]

The Zero-Star Hotel | You know the trend in recession chic has gone a little too far when one of the worst hotels imaginable reports that it has a waiting list. The first-ever "zero-star hotel," which doubles as both an actual hotel and art installation and is scheduled to open in Switzerland in June, is situated in an air raid shelter and features dormitory-style rooms, shared bathrooms, limited hot water, no heat, and no windows. But it already has a 1,000-person waiting list. It's also where AIG and Bank of America should probably plan to hold their next training seminar, but we have a feeling that isn't going to happen. [HotelChatter]

Room Rate Plunge | Now would be an excellent time to invite your parents to come and visit New York! According to a new survey, nightly hotel rates in the city have dropped nearly 30 percent over the past year: The average room now costs $284 a night, down from $404 at the beginning of 2008. On the other hand, if you happen to despise your parents and want to punish them for ruining your childhood, you'd be better off proposing that they take a trip to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Tokyo or Milan. Those were the only four big cities that saw hotel rates increase over the past year. [HotelChatter]

Bobby's Reservations Line Is Still Open | The Tribeca Film Festival is only two weeks away, which means Robert De Niro's Greenwich Hotel must already be fully booked with attendees paying top dollar to stay around the corner, right? Not so much. It turns out plenty of rooms are available, according to the folks over at Hotel Chatter, who found run-of-the-mill rooms going for just $475 a night. Of course, if you've been following the hotel over the past few months, it's likely you saw this coming. [Hotel Chatter]

Some Jobs Have All the Perks | The Hotel on Rivington may not be the coolest hotel downtown, but you have to give them points for trying to keep up with the whole name-brand hotel clothing trend. THOR's management is giving every employee a pair of DC LIFE "dress sneakers," so their footwear matches "the scarlet carpeting of the hotel's dramatic entrance." Also: Not a bad way to keep up employee morale when you can't afford to give anyone a raise. [HC]

Hotel Manager's Career Turns to Ashes | A word of advice: If you happen to be a hotel manager and you notice an employee come to work with a bit of ash on his forehead, you may want to check a calendar before demanding that he "wipe that fucking shit off." It could be Ash Wednesday! Unfortunately, no one bothered to mention this to Niklaus Leuenberger, the (former) managing director of the Palace Hotel who was fired on Monday for doing just that. Of course, the rather unique location of the hotel probably didn't help Leuenberger's cause. Not only is the Palace conveniently located across the street from St. Patrick's, the church owns the property the hotel sits on, too. [NYDN]

Leona Helmsley Now Paying Other People's Taxes | Every hotel has a gimmick these days, but the one the Helmsley Hotel is offering up may be the most morbid. In honor of tax season—and the late Leona Helmsley's famous aversion to paying them—the hotel is offering "tax-free" rooms, a promotion that shaves roughly $50 off the $250 room rate. No word on whether the hotel has other Leona-inspired specials in the works, although given all the trouble that Trouble caused, a doggie-friendly deal seems like a natural follow-up. [HotelChatter] 

If we're in the middle of a deep recession, no one has bothered to mention it to the management of The Pierre. The iconic hotel is reopening on June 1 after a lengthy renovation but it has no plans to adjust its prices for the downturn in the economy: A "classic room" will run $816 a night and suites are available for $1,640. Hurry up! These prices are only available if you book now; the hotel says it plans to raise them just as soon as the hotel opens. The very generous introductory special doesn't explain why the reservations line is currently picking up on the first ring, but, hey, it could have just been rare moment of downtime.

Goldman Sachs Bankers Feel the Pain | What is the world coming to? Not only are Goldman Sachs employees visiting NYC no longer permitted to stay at the Ritz or Carlyle, the company is forcing them to stay at the Embassy Suites Hotel in lower Manhattan. Really. But it comes with a few perks: "The nightly manager's happy hour features free beer and popcorn. Flash a room key and earn a seat at the complimentary all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet and a 10% discount at the Chevy's Mexican-style restaurant next-door." [WSJ]

The mob gathered outside the Trump International Hotel is not comprised of outraged Trump Entertainment shareholders who watched the company file for bankruptcy protection for the third time today. Apparently they're crazy tweens hoping to catch a glimpse of the Jonas Brothers. But at least if Donald Trump is feeling particularly down in the dumps about today's news, he can always walk in and out of his hotel and guarantee himself a few rounds of applause.

De Niro's Greenwich: More Troubled Than Ever | This isn't an easy time for anyone in the hotel business. It's especially rough if you happen to be Robert De Niro and the hotel you're involved with happens to be the Greenwich: De Niro's partners, Ira Drukier and Richard Born, admitted this week that the new, celeb-friendly hotel is running a 50 percent occupancy rate. [NYO]