Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide opened its 14th Element hotel in Harrison last Thursday with members of the development team pedal-powering a virtual ribbon-cutting at the new location, 399 Somerset St., just off Frank E. Rodgers Blvd. South.
Starwood CEO Fritz van Paasschen told visitors that that the company is “looking to open 19 more” Element hotels “in the next couple of years” in places like the United Kingdom and China. With the Element brand, “we want to tap into a focus on wellness and sustainability,” he said.
Last Thursday in Harrison, the hotel’s builders and managers mounted bicycles attached to bike generator stands and, as they worked the pedals, they generated enough electricity to power a flat screen plasma monitor to create an “official opening’’ message on screen.
The event underscored Element’s commitment to pursuing LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) certification for each of its hotels. Element at Harrison is a 138-room modular facility built by a joint venture of Ironstate Holdings LLC and The Pegasus Group and managed by Crescent Hotels & Resorts. The hotel, which opened to guests Aug. 21, features a 24-hour fitness center, indoor pool and a 1,500 square foot meeting room.
The hotel, steps away from the Harrison PATH station, offers complimentary bikes for guests to borrow, plus complimentary Wi-Fi throughout the facility, breakfast, an evening reception and salon bar carts stocked with wines and beers, soft drinks and snacks available after hours.
About 8,000 square feet of the ground floor space is dedicated to retail use. A 2,200 square foot Dunkin’ Donuts has already opened; AT&T will be leasing a 1,500 square foot retail space later this year; Cork Wine & Liquors will be occupying 2,000 square feet in 60 to 90 days; and a retail food shop is planned for the remaining 2,000 square feet, according to Michael Barry, principal of Ironstate.
LEFT: Gary Maida, general manager of Crescent Hotels & Resorts, (at podium) is flanked, from l., by Richard Miller (The Pegasus Group), Michael Barry (Ironstate
Holdings) and Michael Williams (Crescent VP). RIGHT: Fritz van Paasschen, Starwood CEO, at ceremonial opening for Element at Harrison.
Ironstate and Pegasus have partnered to develop Harrison Station, a three-phase, mixed-use project which, at full build-out, will consist of six residential buildings with ground floor retail and the hotel with retail.
The first phase, at 300 Somerset St., which was completed September 2011, comprises 275 luxury rental apartments with a 24-hour attended lobby, fitness center, residents’ lounge with large screen TVs and ping pong table, landscaped courtyard with outdoor pool and beach volleyball court, all above 12,814 square feet of retail, including Five Guys Burgers & Fries, Pronto Gourmet, Sakura Japan, Pro-Cuts, GNC and Path Cleaners.
Phase 2 is the 138-room Element at Harrison and accompanying retail.
Now under construction, next door to the hotel, is Phase 3, which will consist of four stories of 329 residential units and 8,700 square feet of retail, with an estimated completion by October 2015.
– Ron Leir
