More Whining From the Artsy Types

In an odd little item in The New York Post yesterday, Born and Drukier of BD Hotels claim to have increased revenue without slashing room rates.  Be that as it may, for me the most revealing part of the article – not attributed to Born and Drukier , but still I assume, reflective of their views – was the suggestion that now residents ought to stop whining that that the “sacred energy” of the hotel is being lost.  It’s as if they thought that, all along, we had been equating the energy of the Chelsea with money!  Boy, aren’t we a confused lot.  Luckily, we have Born and Drukier and their cell phones and bank books to set us straight: not only have they not destroyed the energy of the Chelsea, they’ve actually increased it!  Just look at the numbers, dumbass Bohemians!

    Actually, it’s easy enough to spot a little fudging in the numbers right away.  As proof that they haven’t slashed room rates, the article cites averages ($183 versus $180 a year ago), which of course doesn’t preclude the possibility that they have slashed rates on some rooms.  It’s been common knowledge around here that they are filling the hotel with hordes of tourists who booked their rooms over the Internet on the cheap.  As we reported a while back, we have seen rooms listed as low as $109 per night, a rate not seen since the 1990s.

     Who can blame us if we are let to suspect a little more in the way of creative accounting?  Revenue does not equal profits.  There are a lot more people on the payroll now, and guess what, those Internet booking fees will one day come due.  What we’re seeing here is most likely a short term fix, in other words; the real test is what they do over the long haul.
     It wouldn’t shock me, however, if Born & Drukier were able to generate more profits than the Bards.  For Stanley, as comically greedy as he did sometimes seem, it never was all about the money. And that’s something that Born & Drukier, for all their superior attitude and condescension  toward the residents of the Chelsea, will, sadly, never be quite able to grasp.

     And what the heck are Born & Drukier crowing about anyway the average rate for a New York City hotel room is $273 per night! – Ed Hamilton  (The article is below. Photo: Drukier & Friends)

Richard Born and Ira Drukier want you to know this about the Chelsea Hotel, of which their BD Hotels have taken control - to the dismay of old-timers living there on the cheap: room occupancy last month was 84 percent, way up over the 55 percent reported in July 2006 - a jump achieved without slashing rates ($183 average per night versus $180 a year ago).

Room revenue soared to $480,000 in July from $299,000 last year. Based on bookings to date, August revenue will be $700,000 and occupancy 90 percent - compared with $330,000 and 61 percent one year ago, when the place was being run by longtime manager Stanley Bard.

So, all of you artsy types grumbling that the hotel's "sacred energy" would be lost following the Chelsea board's ouster of Bard in favor of BD - quit whining, OK?  (Source: NY POST)