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Many cities across the United States are struggling to find shelter for the migrants that have been shipped there by border states. One hotel in New York City decided to not become a Marriott franchise and instead turned the building into a shelter for migrants. This did not sit well with Marriott and the hotel giant has just filed a $2.6 million lawsuit.
A hotel in Jamaica, Queens near New York John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK) was supposed to become a split Aloft and Element hotel. JFK is lacking in airport hotels and this would have provided some options for travelers. The agreement dates back to 2015, but a series of construction and pandemic-related delays pushed it forward. The hotel was finally scheduled to open (eight years after the agreement was signed) in 2023, but the owners changed their minds mere months before its first Marriott Bonvoy® members stepped foot inside.
They saw it as more lucrative to use the property as a shelter for migrants. The owners didn’t even take down the Aloft and Element signs and branding initially or pay Marriott its franchise fees. Marriott states that they tried to reach an agreement, but the owners of Pride Hotel, LLC thought they could just walk away from the deal. There are around six hotels near JFK that have been turned into migrant shelters. These offer lucrative contracts and room rates between $55 to $385 per night. These rooms will always be filled and there are no issues with rooms being left vacant. The owners claim that this is the way they can maintain their business as travel is down and that it’s not “economically feasible” to run the hotel as originally planned.
Lucky from One Mile at a Time makes the point that based on the amount of time that passed and the changes to the market and the need for migrant shelters that the hotel is making a point that can be argued, but that it is not taking into consideration any fees or restitution for Marriott as it is suffering the loss of a property that it could make money on every time someone booked a room.
Anthony’s Take: The 18-story hotel has 283 rooms. Clearly, the owner is thinking that it can make more running a shelter. Marriott will have its day in court and we’ll see what is decided.
(Image Credit: Google Maps.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
1 comment
“Many cities across the United States are struggling to find shelter for the migrants that have been shipped there by border states.” Ask not what states shipped the migrants, but what Presidential candidate failed to seal the border.