April 30, 2013 Lohud ; Author Alex Taylor
NYACK — A proposed $19 million boutique hotel on High Avenue came one step closer to reality after the Nyack Zoning Board of Appeals on Monday issued zoning variances for the project.
The developer, WY Management LLC, had sought the village’s approval to convert a vacant manufacturing facility at 400 High Ave. into a 132-room hotel with a steakhouse, radio station and conference center.
The variance was needed to add two floors to the existing structure: a two-story, 40,000-square-foot corrugated metal building next to Oak Hill Cemetery and Exit 11 of the New York State Thruway.
Because the area is zoned as a manufacturing district, a special permit was also needed, officials said.
“Our land use board has done its usual good work,” Nyack Mayor Jen Laird-White said Tuesday. “A great idea looks like it may be coming to fruition as a great project.”
Michael Yanko and Kerry Wellington, co-owners of WY Management, declined to comment Tuesday.
Once built, the hotel will be managed by Nylo Hotels, a boutique chain with hotels in Texas and Rhode Island, with another planned for New York.
Architectural renderings of 400 High Ave. show a stylish, loft-like design, including brick and glass siding and extensive outdoor landscaping. In addition to the 184-seat restaurant, the hotel will feature a bar and fitness center.
The site was formerly occupied by Stoffel Seals Corp., a plastics
and metal manufacturer that relocated to Congers about five years ago. WY Management bought the property for a reported $4.2 million.
A Best Western — the only other hotel in the village — is a block away on Polhemus Street.
The village Planning Board will meet Monday to vote on final site approval — the last step before construction.
“Once the Planning Board gives a final they can commence the building permit process for construction,” Nyack Village Attorney Walter Sevastian said. “They’re getting close.”
The hotel is expected to open late 2014, according to the developer’s website.
Earlier this year, the Rockland County Industrial Development Agency approved exemptions on the sales and mortgage recording tax to help the project. Developers are also negotiating a payment in lieu of taxes on the site.
WY Management recently opened an office at 79 Main St. in Nyack. The developer also is converting the former MetLifeFinancial Services Building in Broxville into multifamily apartments.