L'Enfant Plaza Hotel
Encyclopedia
The L'Enfant Plaza Hotel is a hotel
located in downtown Washington, D.C.
, in the United States
. It was designed by architect Vlastimil Koubek
, and named after Pierre Charles L'Enfant
, the first surveyor and designer of the street layout of Washington, D.C.
The hotel is located at L'Enfant Plaza
just south of the National Mall
and is 2 miles (3.2 km) from Washington Reagan National Airport, 27 miles (43.5 km) from Washington Dulles International Airport
, and 33 miles (53.1 km) from Baltimore Washington International Airport. The hotel features 372 guest rooms, 36 larger "Executive Rooms", and several suites on the top four floors of a 12-story mixed-use building. The ground floor is occupied by the hotel's lobby, with separate elevators for hotel guests and office tenants. The hotel has two restaurants: The American Grill, and the Foggy Brew Pub. The facility has 21000 square feet (1,951 m²) of meeting room space, which includes a main ballroom which seats 700.
proposed a grand mall along 10th Street SW, extending from Independence Avenue SW to end at a traffic circle
at G Street SW. This mall Zeckendorf named L'Enfant Plaza, and it was approved for construction in April 1955. In December 1959, Zeckendorf won approval to build a 1,000-room hotel and five privately owned office buildings on L'Enfant Plaza. The Redevelopment Land Agency also approved the condemnation
and razing of 14 city blocks for construction of the plaza, hotel, and office buildings. Construction was to have begun on January 1, 1961, but was delayed due to unresolved design issues with L'Enfant Promenade, the short time-frame to prepare detailed construction plans, and because Congress had not granted air rights
above 9th Street SW to the developers.
Construction of L'Enfant Plaza and the hotel were then delayed another decade. Zeckendorf agreed to build the promenade, plaza, and all surrounding buildings as a single project in April 1961 and to pay $20 per 1 square foot (0.09290304 m²). These pledges led the Redevelopment Land Agency to award the 14-block area to Zeckendorf in October 1961 for $7 million. By this time, although the hotel had retained its size, the number of office buildings had shrunk from eight to three. Zeckendorf added an underground shopping mall of shops and restaurants to the project in November 1962, and construction on the promenade and plaza was to have begun in April 1963. But Zeckendorf's vast real estate empire began to suffer severe financial difficulties in 1964. (The company went bankrupt in 1965.) With Zeckendorf unable to make good on his construction pledges, the Redevelopment Land Agency forced him to withdraw and sell his interest in L'Enfant Plaza in November 1964.
The buyer of Zeckendorf's property and leases was the L'Enfant Plaza Corp. (also known as L'Enfant Properties). L'Enfant Plaza Corp. was a syndicate led by former United States Air Force
Lieutenant General
Elwood R. Quesada
, and included Chase Manhattan Bank
president David Rockefeller
, D.C. businessman David A. Garrett, investment banker
André Meyer
, and the real estate investment firm Gerry Brothers & Co. Quesada said that if the Redevelopment Land Agency approved the sale, it would begin immediate construction of the promenade, the 1,400-car parking garage beneath it, and the plaza. The agency gave its approval on January 21, 1965. The sale was final on August 30.
Site preparation for L'Enfant promenade and plaza began in November 1965. Air rights over 9th Street SW were granted for a rent of $500 per year for 99 years on November 23, 1965. The actual groundbreaking for L'Enfant Plaza occurred on December 9, but the project was still hindered by delays. The federal government was building the James V. Forrestal Building at the northern end of L'Enfant promenade, and the whole northern end of the promenade and the associated roadway was a year behind its construction schedule by June 1967. Meanwhile, over-optimistic construction schedules and labor shortages meant L'Enfant Plaza Corp's building of the North and South buildings were six months behind projected schedules. The $23 million complex neared completion in January 1968, and the office buildings, plaza, and promenade opened to the public and businesses in June 1968. The plaza was formally dedicated on Saturday, November 16, 1968.
The west office building and the hotel remained to be built, at a cost of $40 million. Construction on the 640000 square feet (59,457.9 m²) West Building and 730-car parking garage (designed by D.C. architect Vlastimil Koubek) began on February 18, 1969.
chain agreed to co-finance construction of the property with L'Enfant Plaza Corp., although details of the agreement were not provided. The hotel would occupy the top four floors and lobby of the 12-story building, with separate elevators for office tenants and hotel guests. The 378-room hotel, designed by Koubek, had a rooftop swimming pool, two restaurants, a cocktail lounge, and meeting rooms. The general contractor for the building was George Hyman Construction Co. (now Clark Construction Group).
A major problem emerged during the hotel's construction. The Robert C. Weaver Federal Building
, headquarters of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD), had been constructed on a Redevelopment Land Agency site in November 1965. John McShain, Inc.
, one of the largest federal building contractors in the Washington metro area, was the lead construction contractor. During the HUD building's construction, the footings for the western portion of the building were accidentally built 1.5 to 3.5 ft (0.4572 to 1.1 m) over the property line. The 3 foot (0.9144 m)-thick footings for the HUD building were 23 feet (7 m) underground. L'Enfant Plaza Corp. sued John McShain, Inc. and the Redevelopment Land Agency for removal of the footings, stabilization of the HUD structure, and associated costs. The action spawned several lengthy court battles which lasted through the 1970s.
The L'Enfant Plaza Hotel opened with a three-day gala ending with its dedication on May 31, 1973. The festivities began on May 29 with a birthday party for author Anita Loos
attended by 260 Loews' executives, celebrities, and press—including actress Carol Channing
singing "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend
" while seated on top of a 5 feet (1.5 m) tall cake. More than 1,500 people including Senator
J. William Fulbright
, Senator Jacob Javits, former Secretary of Defense
Clark Clifford
, and numerous business people, bankers, merchants, and construction company executives attended a reception at the hotel on May 30, and were permitted to roam freely throughout the facility throughout the evening. On May 31, Mayor of the District of Columbia
Walter Washington
, flanked by the Thomas Jefferson High School
marching band and 40 high-kicking high school majorettes
, cut the ribbon formally opening the hotel. The finished hotel had 372 rooms and occupied the bottom two "lobby floors" and the top four floors of the building. The building's final cost was $30 million.
, and Abby Rockefeller Mauzé
.
The hotel suffered a serious fire in 1975. On February 10, a fire broke out in a 12th floor storeroom which killed a hotel maid and injured three others. A hotel waiter died the following day.
From its opening until May 2005, the hotel was managed by Loews Hotels. For the next five years, it was managed by Crestline Hotels & Resorts
, but the Davidson Hotel Company assumed control of its operations in July 2010.
In November 2003, the JBG Companies purchased L'Enfant Plaza, the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel, and the North and South office buildings from the L'Enfant Plaza Corp. for $200 million. The following year, the JBG Companies upgraded the hotel's physical plant, and added a Louvre Pyramid
-like structure to the plaza in front of the hotel.
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
located in downtown Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was designed by architect Vlastimil Koubek
Vlastimil Koubek
Vlastimil Koubek was a Czech American architect who designed more than 100 buildings, most of them in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. When he retired, he had designed buildings worth more than $2 billion. Most of his work is Modernist in style, although he developed a few structures in...
, and named after Pierre Charles L'Enfant
Pierre Charles L'Enfant
Pierre Charles L'Enfant was a French-born American architect and civil engineer best known for designing the layout of the streets of Washington, D.C..-Early life:...
, the first surveyor and designer of the street layout of Washington, D.C.
The hotel is located at L'Enfant Plaza
L'Enfant Plaza
L'Enfant Plaza is a complex of one governmental and three commercial buildings, as well as the "La Promenade" shopping mall, in the Southwest section of Washington, D.C. The plaza is located south of Independence Avenue SW between 12th and 9th Streets SW...
just south of the National Mall
National Mall
The National Mall is an open-area national park in downtown Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. The National Mall is a unit of the National Park Service , and is administered by the National Mall and Memorial Parks unit...
and is 2 miles (3.2 km) from Washington Reagan National Airport, 27 miles (43.5 km) from Washington Dulles International Airport
Washington Dulles International Airport
Washington Dulles International Airport is a public airport in Dulles, Virginia, 26 miles west of downtown Washington, D.C. The airport serves the Baltimore-Washington-Northern Virginia metropolitan area centered on the District of Columbia. It is named after John Foster Dulles, Secretary of...
, and 33 miles (53.1 km) from Baltimore Washington International Airport. The hotel features 372 guest rooms, 36 larger "Executive Rooms", and several suites on the top four floors of a 12-story mixed-use building. The ground floor is occupied by the hotel's lobby, with separate elevators for hotel guests and office tenants. The hotel has two restaurants: The American Grill, and the Foggy Brew Pub. The facility has 21000 square feet (1,951 m²) of meeting room space, which includes a main ballroom which seats 700.
Building L'Enfant Plaza
In 1946, the United States Congress passed the District of Columbia Redevelopment Act, which established the District of Columbia Redevelopment Land Agency and provided for clearance of land and redevelopment funds in the capital. After a decade of discussion, public comment, legal battles, and negotiations with landowners and developers, the Southwest Urban Renewal Plan was approved in November 1956. New York City developer William ZeckendorfWilliam Zeckendorf
William Zeckendorf, Sr. was a prominent American real estate developer. Through his development company Webb and Knapp – for which he began working in 1938 and which he purchased in 1949 – he developed a significant portion of the New York City urban landscape.-Career:Zeckendorf's...
proposed a grand mall along 10th Street SW, extending from Independence Avenue SW to end at a traffic circle
Traffic circle
A traffic circle or rotary is a type of circular intersection in which traffic must travel in one direction around a central island. In some countries, traffic entering the circle has the right-of-way and drivers in the circle must yield. In many other countries, traffic entering the circle must...
at G Street SW. This mall Zeckendorf named L'Enfant Plaza, and it was approved for construction in April 1955. In December 1959, Zeckendorf won approval to build a 1,000-room hotel and five privately owned office buildings on L'Enfant Plaza. The Redevelopment Land Agency also approved the condemnation
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
and razing of 14 city blocks for construction of the plaza, hotel, and office buildings. Construction was to have begun on January 1, 1961, but was delayed due to unresolved design issues with L'Enfant Promenade, the short time-frame to prepare detailed construction plans, and because Congress had not granted air rights
Air rights
Air rights are a type of development right in real estate, referring to the empty space above a property. Generally speaking, owning or renting land or a building gives one the right to use and develop the air rights....
above 9th Street SW to the developers.
Construction of L'Enfant Plaza and the hotel were then delayed another decade. Zeckendorf agreed to build the promenade, plaza, and all surrounding buildings as a single project in April 1961 and to pay $20 per 1 square foot (0.09290304 m²). These pledges led the Redevelopment Land Agency to award the 14-block area to Zeckendorf in October 1961 for $7 million. By this time, although the hotel had retained its size, the number of office buildings had shrunk from eight to three. Zeckendorf added an underground shopping mall of shops and restaurants to the project in November 1962, and construction on the promenade and plaza was to have begun in April 1963. But Zeckendorf's vast real estate empire began to suffer severe financial difficulties in 1964. (The company went bankrupt in 1965.) With Zeckendorf unable to make good on his construction pledges, the Redevelopment Land Agency forced him to withdraw and sell his interest in L'Enfant Plaza in November 1964.
The buyer of Zeckendorf's property and leases was the L'Enfant Plaza Corp. (also known as L'Enfant Properties). L'Enfant Plaza Corp. was a syndicate led by former United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General (United States)
In the United States Army, the United States Air Force and the United States Marine Corps, lieutenant general is a three-star general officer rank, with the pay grade of O-9. Lieutenant general ranks above major general and below general...
Elwood R. Quesada
Elwood Richard Quesada
Elwood Richard "Pete" Quesada, CB, CBE was a United States Air Force General, FAA administrator, and, later, a club owner in Major League Baseball.-Early years:...
, and included Chase Manhattan Bank
Chase (bank)
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase, is a national bank that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of financial services firm JPMorgan Chase. The bank was known as Chase Manhattan Bank until it merged with J.P. Morgan & Co. in 2000...
president David Rockefeller
David Rockefeller
David Rockefeller, Sr. is the current patriarch of the Rockefeller family. He is the youngest and only surviving child of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, and the only surviving grandchild of oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil. His five siblings were...
, D.C. businessman David A. Garrett, investment banker
Investment banking
An investment bank is a financial institution that assists individuals, corporations and governments in raising capital by underwriting and/or acting as the client's agent in the issuance of securities...
André Meyer
André Meyer
André Benoit Mathieu Meyer was a French-born American Wall Street investment banker.Meyer was born in Paris to a low-income family. As a boy, he began following the workings of the stock market and out of necessity left school at age sixteen to work as a messenger at the Paris Bourse...
, and the real estate investment firm Gerry Brothers & Co. Quesada said that if the Redevelopment Land Agency approved the sale, it would begin immediate construction of the promenade, the 1,400-car parking garage beneath it, and the plaza. The agency gave its approval on January 21, 1965. The sale was final on August 30.
Site preparation for L'Enfant promenade and plaza began in November 1965. Air rights over 9th Street SW were granted for a rent of $500 per year for 99 years on November 23, 1965. The actual groundbreaking for L'Enfant Plaza occurred on December 9, but the project was still hindered by delays. The federal government was building the James V. Forrestal Building at the northern end of L'Enfant promenade, and the whole northern end of the promenade and the associated roadway was a year behind its construction schedule by June 1967. Meanwhile, over-optimistic construction schedules and labor shortages meant L'Enfant Plaza Corp's building of the North and South buildings were six months behind projected schedules. The $23 million complex neared completion in January 1968, and the office buildings, plaza, and promenade opened to the public and businesses in June 1968. The plaza was formally dedicated on Saturday, November 16, 1968.
The west office building and the hotel remained to be built, at a cost of $40 million. Construction on the 640000 square feet (59,457.9 m²) West Building and 730-car parking garage (designed by D.C. architect Vlastimil Koubek) began on February 18, 1969.
Building the hotel
Construction on the hotel was to have started in the spring of 1970. However, construction on the 1000000 square feet (92,903 m²), $23 million hotel and office building did not begin until June 1971. The Loews HotelsLoews Hotels
-About Loews HotelsHotels:Loews Hotels currently owns and/or operates 18 hotels and resorts in the United States and Canada:-United States locations:*Loews Annapolis Hotel - Annapolis, Maryland*Loews Atlanta Hotel - Atlanta, Georgia...
chain agreed to co-finance construction of the property with L'Enfant Plaza Corp., although details of the agreement were not provided. The hotel would occupy the top four floors and lobby of the 12-story building, with separate elevators for office tenants and hotel guests. The 378-room hotel, designed by Koubek, had a rooftop swimming pool, two restaurants, a cocktail lounge, and meeting rooms. The general contractor for the building was George Hyman Construction Co. (now Clark Construction Group).
A major problem emerged during the hotel's construction. The Robert C. Weaver Federal Building
Robert C. Weaver Federal Building
The Robert C. Weaver Federal Building is a 10-story office building in Washington, D.C., owned by the federal government of the United States. Completed in 1968, it serves as the headquarters of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development . Built by the General Services...
, headquarters of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, also known as HUD, is a Cabinet department in the Executive branch of the United States federal government...
(HUD), had been constructed on a Redevelopment Land Agency site in November 1965. John McShain, Inc.
John McShain
John McShain was a highly successful American building contractor known as "The Man Who Built Washington."...
, one of the largest federal building contractors in the Washington metro area, was the lead construction contractor. During the HUD building's construction, the footings for the western portion of the building were accidentally built 1.5 to 3.5 ft (0.4572 to 1.1 m) over the property line. The 3 foot (0.9144 m)-thick footings for the HUD building were 23 feet (7 m) underground. L'Enfant Plaza Corp. sued John McShain, Inc. and the Redevelopment Land Agency for removal of the footings, stabilization of the HUD structure, and associated costs. The action spawned several lengthy court battles which lasted through the 1970s.
The L'Enfant Plaza Hotel opened with a three-day gala ending with its dedication on May 31, 1973. The festivities began on May 29 with a birthday party for author Anita Loos
Anita Loos
Anita Loos was an American screenwriter, playwright and author.-Early life:Born Corinne Anita Loos in Sisson, California , where her father, R. Beers Loos, had opened a tabloid newspaper for which her mother, Minerva "Minnie" Smith did most of the work of a newspaper publisher...
attended by 260 Loews' executives, celebrities, and press—including actress Carol Channing
Carol Channing
Carol Elaine Channing is an American singer, actress, and comedienne. She is the recipient of three Tony Awards , a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination...
singing "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend
Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend
"Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" is a song introduced by Carol Channing in the original Broadway production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes , which was written by Jule Styne and Leo Robin...
" while seated on top of a 5 feet (1.5 m) tall cake. More than 1,500 people including Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
J. William Fulbright
J. William Fulbright
James William Fulbright was a United States Senator representing Arkansas from 1945 to 1975.Fulbright was a Southern Democrat and a staunch multilateralist who supported the creation of the United Nations and the longest serving chairman in the history of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee...
, Senator Jacob Javits, former Secretary of Defense
United States Secretary of Defense
The Secretary of Defense is the head and chief executive officer of the Department of Defense of the United States of America. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a Defense Minister in other countries...
Clark Clifford
Clark Clifford
Clark McAdams Clifford was an American lawyer who served United States Presidents Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Jimmy Carter, serving as United States Secretary of Defense for Johnson....
, and numerous business people, bankers, merchants, and construction company executives attended a reception at the hotel on May 30, and were permitted to roam freely throughout the facility throughout the evening. On May 31, Mayor of the District of Columbia
Mayor of the District of Columbia
The Mayor of the District of Columbia is the head of the executive branch of the government of Washington, D.C. The Mayor has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Council of the District of Columbia...
Walter Washington
Walter Washington
Walter Edward Washington, was an American politician, the first home-rule mayor of the District of Columbia...
, flanked by the Thomas Jefferson High School
Thomas Jefferson High School (Alexandria, Virginia)
Thomas Jefferson High School was a Fairfax County, Virginia public high school that opened in 1964 and closed in 1987.DEMOGRAPHICS:50% Asian40% Indian5% White5% Unknown0% African American...
marching band and 40 high-kicking high school majorettes
Majorette (dancer)
A majorette is a person doing choreographed dance or movement, primarily baton twirling associated with marching bands during parades. It derives from girls', in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, involvement in drill and gymnastic teams or groups that used apparatuses similar to those found...
, cut the ribbon formally opening the hotel. The finished hotel had 372 rooms and occupied the bottom two "lobby floors" and the top four floors of the building. The building's final cost was $30 million.
Operation
Quesada and the Rockefeller family each owned about 39 percent of L'Enfant Plaza Corp. Major Rockefeller investors included David Rockefeller, David Rockefeller, Jr.David Rockefeller, Jr.
David Rockefeller Jr. is an American philanthropist and an active participant in nonprofit and environmental areas. The eldest son of Margaret "Peggy" McGrath and David Rockefeller, he is a leading fourth-generation member of the prominent Rockefeller family, serving on many boards of the...
, and Abby Rockefeller Mauzé
Abby Rockefeller Mauzé
Abigail "Abby" Rockefeller Mauzé was the first child and only daughter of John Davison Rockefeller, Jr. and Abigail "Abby" Greene Aldrich Rockefeller...
.
The hotel suffered a serious fire in 1975. On February 10, a fire broke out in a 12th floor storeroom which killed a hotel maid and injured three others. A hotel waiter died the following day.
From its opening until May 2005, the hotel was managed by Loews Hotels. For the next five years, it was managed by Crestline Hotels & Resorts
Crestline Hotels & Resorts
Crestline Hotels & Resorts, Inc. is an independent hospitality management company headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia, United States. Founded in 2000, the company currently manages 47 hotels, resorts and conference and convention centers with nearly 8,500 rooms in 11 states and the District of...
, but the Davidson Hotel Company assumed control of its operations in July 2010.
In November 2003, the JBG Companies purchased L'Enfant Plaza, the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel, and the North and South office buildings from the L'Enfant Plaza Corp. for $200 million. The following year, the JBG Companies upgraded the hotel's physical plant, and added a Louvre Pyramid
Louvre Pyramid
The Louvre Pyramid is a large glass and metal pyramid, surrounded by three smaller pyramids, in the main courtyard of the Louvre Palace in Paris. The large pyramid serves as the main entrance to the Louvre Museum...
-like structure to the plaza in front of the hotel.