Sofitel New York
45 West 44th Street | also 44 West 45th Street | Midtown | built 1999
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The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.
Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.
- 1997
A 1997 design competition picks Brennan Beer Gorman, and a second picks Pierre-Yves Rochon for the interiors
Accor's Sofitel project chose its architect, Brennan Beer Gorman, through a design competition in 1997; a second competition picked the French-based designer Pierre-Yves Rochon for the interiors. The 398-room hotel sits on a T-shaped lot between 44th and 45th Streets. Its first four floors are limestone, chosen to match the neighboring New York Yacht Club and to echo Paris, with a blue-tinted curtain wall above.
Source: bdcnetwork.com
- 2000
Builders shield the New York Yacht Club's Tiffany skylight while excavating for the Sofitel
The Sofitel, which opened on Bastille Day 2000, stands next to the 1898 New York Yacht Club on West 44th Street, and builders had to show the Landmarks Preservation Commission how they would protect it during blasting and excavation for two basement levels. Scaffolding was put up to protect its Tiffany skylight, and rock anchors and underpinning were needed as part of the excavation. Accor also bought the club's available air rights, which allowed the hotel to grow to 280,000 square feet.
Source: bdcnetwork.com
- 2000
The Sofitel wins the 2000 Emporis Skyscraper Award
After it was finished, the Sofitel on West 44th Street received the Emporis Skyscraper Award for 2000. The 358-foot, 30-story limestone-and-glass tower has a bronze facade showing three flying geese above a large portal, and its design was said to be inspired by Parisian Moderne limestone buildings.
“After construction the building was awarded the 2000 Emporis Skyscraper Award.”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2000
The Sofitel New York opens on West 44th Street
Construction of the Sofitel begins in 1997, and the hotel opens in 2000. Brennan Beer Gorman's design, chosen in a competition that included Michael Graves & Associates, rises 30 stories with 398 guest rooms. The facade draws on Parisian Moderne limestone buildings and shows three flying geese above a large portal, and the tower wins the 2000 Emporis Skyscraper Award.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2011
IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn is arrested after a Sofitel maid accuses him of assault
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the International Monetary Fund, checked into the Sofitel on May 13, 2011. The next day a maid told authorities he had assaulted her in his suite, and he was taken off a Paris-bound Air France flight at Kennedy Airport. He was charged and held at Rikers Island before bail. On August 23 a judge dismissed all charges after prosecutors said the accuser's lies undermined her account.
Source: nbcnewyork.com
- 2025
The Sofitel completes a full renovation of its public spaces and rooms
In November 2025 the Sofitel finishes a comprehensive renovation that covers its public spaces, meeting rooms and guest accommodations. The hotel, which opened in 2000, is inspired by French traditions in its furnishings and theme.
Source: Wikipedia
Further reading
- Sofitel New York HotelWikipedia
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