A meeting house ( meetinghouse , meeting-house ) is a building where religious and sometimes public meetings take place.
131-659: The Chatwal New York , originally the Lambs Club Building , is a hotel and a former clubhouse at 130 West 44th Street, near Times Square , in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City . The building was originally six stories high and was developed in two phases as the headquarters of the Lambs , a theatrical social club. The original wing at 128–130 West 44th Street was designed by Stanford White of McKim, Mead & White between 1904 and 1905;
262-589: A fireplace mantel with denticulation ; pilasters in the Ionic order ; and paneled ceiling beams. An alcove on the second floor was rededicated in 1947 as a memorial to Lambs members who had died during World Wars I and II. The third floor included a library and a main assembly room. The third and fourth stories also contained the Edwin Burke Memorial Theatre. This theater was variously cited as containing 330, 360, 400, or 500 seats, and it had
393-403: A frieze with foliate designs, runs above the entirety of the second floor. There are brick round arches on the third story. Double-hung windows are recessed behind the archways. The arches are topped by terracotta keystones , and the sides of each arch contain impost blocks. The spandrels diagonally above each arch contain depictions of lambs' heads. Between the third and fourth stories
524-530: A loge and a stage with ornate paneling . Bedrooms for members, as well as club offices, were provided on the upper floors of the original building; the annex also contained bedrooms and a handball court on its upper stories. There were either 50, 55, or 65 bedrooms for members. According to Cosmopolitan, the rooms were "always filled" with long-term residents, actors who were starring in Broadway plays, and actors experiencing financial instability. The building
655-618: A $ 300,000 first mortgage loan from the Dime Savings Bank of New York . The architects filed plans with the Manhattan Bureau of Buildings in April 1915, and work on the annex proceeded during World War I . That June, the Lambs received permission to mortgage their clubhouse for $ 450,000; in addition to the first mortgage, the club raised $ 150,000 through a bond issue. The annex's cornerstone was laid on September 16, 1915, and
786-661: A $ 360,000 first mortgage loan on the Lambs Club Building in July 1972. The Lambs filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October 1973, after years of declining revenues. The clubhouse was at risk of being foreclosed unless the club raised $ 1 million. By July 1974, the Lambs owed $ 450,000 to the Tremont Savings and Loan Association and had not made any mortgage payments for 13 months. To avert foreclosure,
917-525: A 'minibar curated by Geoffrey Zakarian'." Elizabeth Arden, Inc. , opened its Red Door Spa at the hotel in 2012. The Chatwal New York also sold personalized marriage proposal packages to attract guests. The hotel closed in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic . A single worker remained on site to maintain the hotel during its extended closure, turning on all the showers and sinks twice a month and flushing
1048-462: A Stanford White building with a rich history" as the Lambs' headquarters. After the restaurant reopened in 2022, Elise Taylor of Vogue described its ambiance as "new-old New York" and said that, while the restaurant retained many of its original design features, its menu was "dotted with a delicious array of seafood". Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in
1179-470: A banquet room, which could accommodate at least 140 diners simultaneously. The banquet room's walls were decorated with portraits of the Lambs' leaders, who were known as "shepherds". On the same level was a library, which was reportedly a popular place for composing music because very few club members ever used that room. The second-story rooms were illuminated by the French windows and contained details such as
1310-441: A contract with Disney, officials from the city and state evicted the pornographic theaters and contracted with Madame Tussauds and AMC Theatres to move onto 42nd Street. This spurred the construction of new office towers, hotels, and tourist attractions in the area. Prudential and Klein dissolved their partnership for the four office-building sites at Times Square's southern end in 1996. The same year, Douglas Durst acquired
1441-482: A cultural hub full of theatres, music halls , and upscale hotels. Times Square quickly became New York's agora , a place to gather to await great tidings and to celebrate them, whether a World Series or a presidential election. Advertising also grew significantly in the 1920s, growing from $ 25 million to $ 85 million over the decade. For example, the Wrigley Spearmint Gum sign, possibly
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#17327765558981572-514: A low entertainment district. The first theater on the square, the Olympia , was built by cigar manufacturer and impresario Oscar Hammerstein I . According to Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898 , "By the early 1890s this once sparsely settled stretch of Broadway was ablaze with electric light and thronged by crowds of middle- and upper-class theatre, restaurant and cafe patrons." In 1904, New York Times publisher Adolph S. Ochs moved
1703-447: A mass yoga event involving up to 15,000 people. Tim Tompkins, a co-founder of the event, said part of its appeal was "finding stillness and calm amid the city rush on the longest day of the year". Architect Mark Foster Gage proposed and designed the original Times Square Valentine's Day heart in 2009. Since then, designing the heart has become an annual competition. In February 2011, Times Square became smoke-free as New York extended
1834-519: A massive crowd celebrated Victory in Europe Day in Times Square; and on August 15, 1945, the largest crowd in the history of Times Square gathered to celebrate Victory over Japan Day , reaching an estimated two million. The victory itself was announced by a headline on the "zipper" news ticker at One Times Square , which read "OFFICIAL ***TRUMAN ANNOUNCES JAPANESE SURRENDER ***". From
1965-663: A million visitors to Times Square every year, in addition to a worldwide audience of one billion or more on various digital media platforms. Times Square, specifically the intersection of Broadway and 42nd Street, is the eastern terminus of the Lincoln Highway , the first road across the United States for motorized vehicles. Times Square is sometimes referred to as "the Crossroads of the World" and "the heart of
2096-500: A minimum limit for lighting instead of the standard maximum limit. The density of illuminated signs in Times Square rivals that in Las Vegas . Officially, signs in Times Square are called "spectaculars", and the largest of them are called " jumbotrons ". This signage ordinance was implemented in accordance with guidelines set in a revitalization program that New York Governor Mario Cuomo implemented in 1993. Notable signage includes
2227-464: A new clubhouse in the late 1890s. Although the club had moved to 70 West 36th Street in 1897, the Lambs soon outgrew this location. During a weeklong gambol at eight cities in 1898, the Lambs raised over $ 60,000 for the construction of a new clubhouse. The club's "shepherd", or president, DeWolf Hopper announced in March 1902 that the club had decided to build its own clubhouse with a dedicated theater for gambols. The Lambs had performed their gambols at
2358-419: A pole atop the building, marking the start of the new year. It replaced a lavish fireworks display from the top of the building that was held from 1904 to 1906 but stopped by city officials because of the danger of fire. Beginning in 1908, and for more than eighty years thereafter, Times Square sign maker Artkraft Strauss was responsible for the ball-lowering. During World War II, a minute of silence, followed by
2489-553: A recording of church bells pealing, replaced the ball drop because of wartime blackout restrictions. Today, Countdown Entertainment and One Times Square handle the New Year's Eve event in conjunction with the Times Square Alliance. A new energy-efficient LED ball debuted for the arrival of 2008, which was the centennial of the Times Square ball drop. The 2008–09 ball is larger and has become a permanent installation as
2620-458: A reputation as a dangerous and seedy neighborhood in the following decades. Nevertheless, Times Square continued to be the site of the annual ball drop on New Year's Eve . The ball drop was placed on hiatus for New Year's Eve in 1942 and 1943 due to lighting restrictions during World War II , replaced by a moment of silence that was observed at midnight in Times Square, accompanied by the sound of chimes played from sound trucks. On May 8, 1945,
2751-568: A small 24-hour fitness center next to the spa. The hotel has two meeting spaces: a 1,500 sq ft (140 m) meeting room called the Stage Room, which could accommodate 120 people, and a 600 sq ft (56 m) meeting suite called the Stanford White Studio, which could fit 40 people. The meeting rooms contain wooden finishes, as well as elliptical wine cellars that complement the doors in each room. The building
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#17327765558982882-450: A source of controversy in the summer of 2015 because of a large number of complaints about the topless women and panhandling characters. Although neither of these activities are illegal, opponents believed that the panhandlers' presence was detrimental to the quality of life in the area. There were calls from Police Commissioner Bratton and Mayor Bill de Blasio to remove the plaza, although Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer opposed
3013-464: A spiral staircase leading to a roof terrace that overlooks the Belasco Theatre. The rooms have 24-hour butler service, and each floor is served by its own butler. The hotel also has a "pet wardrobe supervisor" who creates wardrobes for guests' pets. The hotel's other amenities include two plunge pools, a Jacuzzi, and a spa with three treatment rooms, as well as a saltwater lap pool . There is
3144-467: A stereo system, flat-screen TVs, and DVD players. Some of the rooms have private terraces that overlook the street. In addition, each room has a large writing desk, wardrobe, and nightstand . The guest bathrooms have marble paneling and heated toilet seats, as well as illuminated mirrors that double as televisions. The penthouse unit, named for the Barrymore family , comprises two suites, one of which has
3275-484: A three-story dwelling at 126 West 44th Street. By 1911, the club had hired Freeman and Hasselman to design a 12-story structure at 134–138 West 44th Street, with a miniature theater. The club had 1,400 members by 1914, prompting the Lambs to host gambols to raise money for the addition. The club finally announced in February 1915 that it would build a six-story annex at 132–134 West 44th Street for $ 250,000, having obtained
3406-605: A tiny hamlet, Great Kill, that became a center for carriage-making, as the upland to the south and east became known as Longacre. Before and after the American Revolution , the area belonged to John Morin Scott , a general of the New York militia , in which he served under George Washington . Scott's manor house was at what is currently 43rd Street, surrounded by countryside used for farming and breeding horses. In
3537-485: A trial until at least the end of the year. The same was done in Herald Square from 33rd to 35th Street. The results were to be closely monitored to determine if the project was successful and should be extended. Bloomberg also stated that he believed the street shutdown would make New York more livable by reducing pollution, cutting down on pedestrian-vehicle accidents, and helping traffic flow more smoothly through
3668-464: A year-round attraction, being used for celebrations on days such as Valentine's Day and Halloween . The New Year's Eve celebrations are usually overseen by thousands of police officers. Aluminum barriers are erected to accommodate spectators; for the 2020 celebration, attended by a million people, barriers were erected from 38th to 59th Street and from Sixth to Eighth Avenue. Typically, the celebrations create large amounts of waste. The waste includes
3799-428: Is a 60-seat bar on its second floor, covering 2,500 sq ft (230 m). The corridors leading to the guestrooms on the upper stories were redecorated in red, blue, or brown when the building was converted into a hotel. The guestrooms generally contain travel-themed decorations, inspired by suitcase and luggage manufacturer Malletier . The rooms contain suede walls and leather-paneled closets; each unit also had
3930-627: Is a busy intersection of art and commerce, where scores of advertisements – electric, neon and illuminated signs and "zipper" news crawls – vie for viewers' attention. Notable examples include: Major buildings on or near Times Square "Numbered" Times Square buildings Meetinghouse Nonconformist Protestant denominations distinguish between a: In early Methodism , meeting houses were typically called "preaching houses" (to distinguish them from church houses , which hosted itinerant preachers ). The colonial meeting house in America
4061-402: Is a large terracotta plaque, atop which is a cartouche with lambs on either side. The fourth story contains flat-arched terracotta lintels , and the keystones of each flat arch are topped by lambs' heads. There is a string course above the fourth story, as well as six plainly-designed windows on the fifth story. Above the fifth story is a projecting cornice with modillions . The sixth floor
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4192-501: Is bounded by West 42nd Street , West 47th Street , 7th Avenue, and Broadway. Broadway runs diagonally, crossing through the horizontal and vertical street grid of Manhattan laid down by the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 , and that intersection creates the "bowtie" shape of Times Square. Times Square is the official name of the southern triangle, below 45th Street. The northern triangle is officially known as Duffy Square and
4323-472: Is designed as a classical-style attic, above which is a balustrade . The clubhouse's interior was designed in the Federal style and contained a variety of theatrical memorabilia. The basement contained a barber shop. The first floor originally contained a lobby, a grill room, and a billiards room. The building's bar, designed by White, was decorated with red walls; Cosmopolitan magazine wrote in 1958 that
4454-470: Is divided vertically into six bays ; the eastern three bays form the original clubhouse, while the western three bays comprise the annex. On the ground level, there are two entrances. Both of the entrances are flanked by engaged columns in the Doric order , which support a entablature . A band course with a meander motif stretches horizontally above the first floor. When the building was developed, there
4585-906: Is famed for the Times Square Ball drop on its roof every New Year's Eve. In 1913, the Lincoln Highway Association , headed by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher , chose the intersection of 42nd Street and Broadway (at the southeast corner of Times Square) to be the Eastern Terminus of the Lincoln Highway . This was the first road across the United States, which originally ran 3,389 mi (5,454 km) coast to coast through 13 states to its western terminus in Lincoln Park in San Francisco. Times Square grew dramatically after World War I . It became
4716-586: Is on 128–132 West 44th Street, on the south sidewalk between Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue , near Times Square in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The rectangular land lot covers 7,656 sq ft (711.3 m), with a frontage of 76 ft (23 m) on 44th Street and a depth of 100.42 ft (31 m). On the same block, the Town Hall is to
4847-467: Is the site of the annual New Year's Eve ball drop. About one million revelers crowd Times Square for the New Year's Eve celebrations, more than twice the usual number of visitors the area usually receives daily. However, for the millennium celebration on December 31, 1999, published reports stated approximately two million people overflowed Times Square, flowing from Sixth Avenue to Eighth Avenue and back on Broadway and Seventh Avenue to 59th Street, making it
4978-820: The Disney theme parks worldwide, with 128,794,000 visitors between March 2012 and February 2013, versus 126,479,000 for the Walt Disney World theme parks in Bay Lake, Florida , in 2012. Even excluding residents from the visitor count, Times Square is the world's second most visited tourist attraction, behind the Las Vegas Strip . The high level of pedestrian traffic has resulted in $ 4.8 billion in annual retail, entertainment, and hotel sales, with 22 cents out of every dollar spent by visitors in New York City being spent within Times Square. Times Square
5109-535: The Garrick Theatre , but they had just been evicted following a disagreement with Charles Frohman . Club members had already subscribed $ 160,000 for the construction of a new clubhouse, and Hopper had received an offer of $ 62,500 for the 36th Street clubhouse. Maurice Campbell offered to lease the new theater. The club agreed to acquire a site at 128–130 West 44th Street in June 1902, although Minnie Lespinasse,
5240-591: The Lamb's Theatre , which was operated by Carolyn Rossi Copeland 's Lamb's Theater Company until 1996. The group operated the first-floor theater by itself and shared the third-floor theater with the church's congregation. The Church of the Nazarene used the building for outreach programs, such as a soup kitchen and a health clinic. The clubhouse also hosted activities and events such as advertising campaigns and Thanksgiving dinners for low-income New Yorkers. The building
5371-701: The Macklowe Hotel , Marriott Marquis , Crowne Plaza , and DoubleTree Suites. By 1986, New York City Planning Commission (CPC) was considering enacting regulations that would have forced new buildings along Times Square to include bright signage as well as deep setbacks . The CPC adopted a planning regulation in 1987, which required large new developments in Times Square to set aside about 5 percent of their space for "entertainment uses". The regulation also required new buildings on Times Square to include large, bright signs. The buildings at 1540 Broadway, 1585 Broadway, and 750 Seventh Avenue were completed at
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5502-399: The Midtown Manhattan section of New York City . It is formed by the junction of Broadway , Seventh Avenue , and 42nd Street . Together with adjacent Duffy Square , Times Square is a bowtie -shaped plaza five blocks long between 42nd and 47th Streets . Times Square is brightly lit by numerous digital billboards and advertisements as well as businesses offering 24/7 service . One of
5633-492: The September 11 attacks ; and several other off-Broadway theaters across the city had been displaced by new development during the past two years. Vikram Chatwal , whose family operated Hampshire Hotels, had hired architect Thierry Despont to renovate the edifice into a 101-room hotel. If the church was unable to relocate, Chatwal had to provide space within the building for the church. Chatwal, who initially planned to rebrand
5764-522: The State of New York took possession of six of the nine historic theaters on 42nd Street, and the New 42nd Street non-profit organization was appointed to oversee their restoration and maintenance. The theaters underwent renovation for Broadway shows, conversion for commercial purposes, or demolition. Opposition to the towers on Times Square, along with Prudential and Park Tower's inability to secure tenants for
5895-685: The Toshiba billboard directly under the NYE ball drop, the curved seven-story NASDAQ sign at the NASDAQ MarketSite at 4 Times Square on 43rd Street, and the curved Coca-Cola sign located underneath another large LED display owned and operated by Samsung . Both the Coca-Cola sign and Samsung LED displays were built by LED display manufacturer Daktronics . Times Square's first environmentally friendly billboard powered by wind and solar energy
6026-668: The Vince Lombardi Trophy . The area was under increased security and witnessed over 400,000 people during the period. In October 2022, casino operator Caesars Entertainment and commercial property developer SL Green submitted a joint proposal to open a casino at 1515 Broadway , along Times Square. The New York state government has yet to act on the proposal. On February 26, 2009, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that traffic lanes along Broadway from 42nd Street to 47th Street would be de-mapped starting Memorial Day 2009 and transformed into pedestrian plazas as
6157-552: The remodeling claim that the neighborhood is safer and cleaner. Detractors have countered that the changes have homogenized or "Disneyfied" the character of Times Square and have unfairly targeted lower-income New Yorkers from nearby neighborhoods such as Hell's Kitchen . The changes were shaped in large part by the actions of The Walt Disney Company , which bought and restored the New Amsterdam Theatre after several attempts at redevelopment had failed. As part of
6288-654: The 1910s, 1920s, and 1930s. However, it was also during this period that the area began to be besieged by crime and corruption, in the form of gambling and prostitution; one case that garnered huge attention was the arrest and subsequent execution of police officer Charles Becker . The general atmosphere of Times Square changed with the onset of the Great Depression in the early 1930s. City residents moved uptown to cheaper neighborhoods, and many popular theaters closed, replaced by saloons, brothels, "burlesque halls, vaudeville stages, and dime houses". The area acquired
6419-525: The 1960s to the early 1990s, the seediness of the area, especially due to its go-go bars , sex shops , peep shows , and adult theaters, became an infamous symbol of the city's decline. As early as 1960, 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues was described by The New York Times as "the 'worst' [block] in town". Later that decade, Times Square was depicted in Midnight Cowboy as gritty, depraved, and desperate. Conditions only worsened in
6550-632: The 1970s and 1980s, as did the crime in the rest of the city, with a 1981 article in Rolling Stone magazine calling 42nd Street in Times Square the "sleaziest block in America". In the mid-1980s, the area bounded by 40th and 50th Streets and Seventh and Ninth Avenues saw over 15,000 crime complaints per year. The block of 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues had 2,300 crimes per year in 1984, of which 20% were felonies. In this era, formerly elegant movie theaters began to show x-rated films , and peep shows hustlers were common. In 1984,
6681-462: The 2001–02 New Year's celebration. Approximately 500,000 revelers attended. Security was high following the September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001, with more than 7,000 New York City police officers on duty in the Square, twice the number for an ordinary year. Times Square started hosting other major annual events in the 2000s. Since 2002, the summer solstice has been marked by "Mind over Madness",
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#17327765558986812-445: The 3,000 pounds of biodegradable confetti dropped at midnight, a tradition of which started in 1992. The New York City Department of Sanitation estimated that by 8 a.m. on New Year's Day 2014, it had cleared over 50 short tons (45 long tons; 45 t) of trash from the New Year's celebration, using 190 workers from their crews and the Times Square Alliance. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City during 2020 reduced
6943-492: The Great White Way ". Times Square functions as a town square , but is not geometrically a square . It is closer in shape to a bowtie, with two triangles emanating roughly north and south from 45th Street, where Seventh Avenue intersects Broadway . Broadway similarly intersects other north–south avenues at Union Square , Madison Square , Herald Square , and Verdi Square , none of which are squares. The area
7074-464: The LPC mandated that the proposed hotel be reduced to seven stories so the new annex would not be visible from street level. The agreement with Hampshire Hotels was finalized in late 1999. Hampshire Hotels leased the site, and the company received an option to convert the building into a hotel at a later date. Manhattan Initiative was also hired as the property manager, while William Q. Brothers III Architect
7205-472: The Lambs to consider developing a new clubhouse, which opened on September 1, 1905. The clubhouse was expanded in 1915, but the Lambs faced financial troubles during the 1920s and 1930s because of competition from talking pictures . After the club experienced further financial difficulties in the 1970s, the clubhouse was sold at auction in 1975, and the Church of the Nazarene bought the clubhouse. The church used
7336-458: The Lambs' "stately brick clubhouse" as a "hallowed stronghold of Broadway actors and song-and-dance men of the old school". The club's members included Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe of songwriting team Lerner and Loewe , who reportedly composed the musical Brigadoon in the third-floor theater. The club began allowing women to eat dinner in the dining room in 1956, although women were still prohibited from becoming members or from entering
7467-547: The Midtown street grid. The pedestrian plaza project was originally opposed by local businesses, who thought that closing the street to cars would hurt business. The original seats put out for pedestrians were inexpensive multicolored plastic lawn chairs, a source of amusement to many New Yorkers; they lasted from the onset of the plaza transformation until August 14, 2009, when they were ceremoniously bundled together in an installation christened Now You See It, Now You Don't by
7598-625: The Nazarene signed a contract in May 1975 to buy the Lambs Club Building. The building was to cost $ 475,000, although the Tremont Savings and Loan Association required the church to pay $ 122,500 before the contract could be closed. The church made a $ 47,500 down payment , of which the Shubert family 's Shubert Foundation contributed $ 15,000. The church intended to use the building for "the enrichment and development of Christian artistic, dramatic, and musical ministries in New York City". The Manhattan Church of
7729-459: The Nazarene was obligated to raise another $ 30,000 by July 14, 1975, and the national church provided a $ 50,000 grant six hours before the July 21, 1975, deadline. The church finalized its purchase the next month. The Lambs relocated to the Women's National Republican Club building at 3 West 51st Street , adjacent to Rockefeller Center . The third-floor theater became an off-Broadway venue called
7860-538: The New York state government, had proposed redeveloping the area around a portion of West 42nd Street in 1981. Four towers designed by Philip Johnson and John Burgee were to be built around 42nd Street's intersections with Broadway and Seventh Avenue. These towers would have been redeveloped by George Klein of Park Tower Realty, though the Prudential Insurance Company of America joined
7991-488: The Theater District could be transferred to a larger number of buildings in the neighborhood. However, the agency was not allowed to designate the interiors of religious buildings as landmarks. In a third attempt to dispose of the air rights, the church announced that it would use 25,000 sq ft (2,300 m) of air rights to construct 150 hotel rooms. The church had wanted to build a nine-story hotel, but
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#17327765558988122-549: The annex at 132 West 44th Street was designed in 1915 by George Freeman. The current design dates to a renovation between 2007 and 2010, designed by Thierry Despont . The building is a New York City designated landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places . The Lambs Club Building is variously cited as being designed in the Colonial , Neo-Georgian , or neoclassical styles. The ground floor of
8253-405: The annex was completed in time for the Lambs' gambols in 1916. The club received a $ 200,000 mortgage loan in 1922, and this mortgage was paid off by 1925. The club continued to grow, prompting its members to consider developing yet another clubhouse in March 1927 at a cost of $ 1.4 million or $ 1.5 million. The club considered relocating to Upper Manhattan and selling its 44th Street building, which
8384-453: The architectural firm McKim, Mead & White . The building was one of several clubhouses that White designed for his firm. The western half of the building was designed in 1915 by George A. Freeman in an identical style to the original building. The modern-day design dates to a 2000s renovation by Thierry Despont . White, a member of the Lambs, had intentionally designed the facade with both Federal -style and neo-Georgian details, as he
8515-476: The area was so derelict and dilapidated, that the entire Times Square area paid the city only $ 6 million in property taxes (equivalent to $ 17.6 million in 2023). In the 1980s, a commercial building boom began in the western parts of Midtown as part of a long-term development plan developed under mayors Ed Koch and David Dinkins . These included office buildings such as 1540 Broadway , 1585 Broadway , and 750 Seventh Avenue , as well as hotels such as
8646-412: The area. The Lambs Club Building, designed for the Lambs social club, is cited as being designed in the Colonial , Neo-Georgian , or neoclassical styles. The building was originally six stories tall, with two basements, although the rear of the site only rose four stories. The original clubhouse, built between 1904 and 1905, occupies the eastern half of the lot and was designed by Stanford White of
8777-426: The artist Jason Peters, and shortly afterward were replaced by sturdier metal furniture. Although the plaza had mixed results on traffic in the area, injuries to motorists and pedestrians decreased, fewer pedestrians were walking in the road, and the number of pedestrians in Times Square increased. On February 11, 2010, Bloomberg announced that the pedestrian plazas would become permanent. The city started rebuilding
8908-417: The beginning of the early 1990s recession , when 14.5 percent of Manhattan office space was vacant. Furthermore, some 9 × 10 ^ sq ft (840,000 m ) of office space in the western section of Midtown had been developed in the 1980s, of which only half had been leased. Consequently, 1540 Broadway was completely empty, while 1585 Broadway and 750 Seventh Avenue had one tenant each, despite
9039-463: The best of these gambols were then publicly presented once a year. In keeping with club rules, the clubhouse never closed at night. Except for maids and housekeepers, women were not allowed to access the upper floors or become Lambs members. Nonetheless, some women did reportedly visit the clubhouse, including Ethel Barrymore and Luisa Tetrazzini . Theatrical figures such as Bobby Clark , John Drew Jr. , Edgar Selwyn , and Douglas Fairbanks stayed in
9170-496: The biggest electric sign "in the world," cost $ 9,000 per month to rent. Some contemporary critics, such as Thorstein Veblen and G. K. Chesterton , disliked the advertising at Times Square. Fritz Lang , after seeing Times Square in 1923, used it as inspiration for his dark industrial film Metropolis . Entertainment icons such as Irving Berlin , Charlie Chaplin , and Fred Astaire were closely associated with Times Square in
9301-489: The building alone. The clubhouse hosted private performances of plays during this time, and it also hosted events in honor of various theatrical figures. Concurrently, the club's membership declined in the 20th century, in part because of younger generations' indifference toward joining clubs, as well as increasing crime rates near Times Square. By the 1970s, the Lambs' membership largely consisted of men who were at least 50 years old. The Tremont Savings and Loan Association placed
9432-471: The building as a mission, while the theaters were leased to an off-Broadway venue called the Lamb's Theatre . The church announced plans to convert the building into a hotel in 1999 and sold the building in 2006 to Hampshire Hotels, operated by the family of Vikram Chatwal . The hotel and the Lambs Club restaurant opened in 2010, and the hotel became part of Starwood 's Luxury Collection. The building
9563-472: The building's construction. The Lambs laid the cornerstone for the clubhouse at a ceremony on August 24, 1904, and they sold their old building in early 1905. The Lambs moved into the building on September 1, 1905, and the club held its first gambol in the 44th Street building that November. The Sun reported that the Lambs' clubhouse signified the relocation of Manhattan's "Theatrical Rialto". The auditorium hosted private gambols for club members each month;
9694-484: The building's facade presented "a strictly businesslike character, as if to emphasize the orderly nature of the membership rather than its artistic and presumably extremely entertaining qualities". After the clubhouse was converted into a hotel, Emirati newspaper The National wrote that the Chatwal New York's "cosy 1920s interiors hark back to a more glamorous era", while Condé Nast Traveller wrote that
9825-451: The building's theater and add classrooms and rehearsal halls. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) had begun considering whether to designate the Lambs Club Building as a city landmark in May 1974, and the LPC designated the building as a landmark on September 24, 1974. In October 1974, Ryan postponed foreclosure proceedings for another six weeks. The club hosted a centennial gala in early December 1974 to raise money for
9956-429: The buildings having over 2 × 10 ^ sq ft (190,000 m ) of office space between them. Entertainment conglomerate Bertelsmann bought 1540 Broadway in 1992, spurring a revival of Times Square in the early 1990s. This was hastened when financial firm Morgan Stanley bought 1585 Broadway in 1993, followed by 750 Seventh Avenue in 1994. The Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC), an agency of
10087-482: The busiest in the New York City Subway system, transporting more than 200,000 passengers daily. Formerly known as Longacre Square , Times Square was renamed in 1904 after The New York Times moved its headquarters to the then newly erected Times Building, now One Times Square . It is the site of the annual New Year's Eve ball drop , which began on December 31, 1907, and continues to attract over
10218-479: The club proposed admitting non-theatrical professionals and women as members, in addition to renting out its theater. Bankruptcy judge Edward J. Ryan gave the Lambs Club a one-month reprieve in August 1974. The same month, the Lambs admitted its first female member, Carolyn Newhouse , whose family was helping raise the $ 450,000 for the club's mortgage. The Lambs' new general director, Gene Frankel , planned to refurbish
10349-577: The clubhouse in 1930. The club received a five-year, $ 315,000 mortgage loan in March 1930 from the American Museum of Natural History . That June, the New York Supreme Court approved a $ 100,000 second mortgage on the clubhouse. By 1931, the clubhouse was valued at $ 800,000; this amount represented 80 percent of the Lambs' total assets. When the Lambs began adapting their private gambols for film in 1932, actresses were invited to
10480-619: The clubhouse's bedrooms. The Hartford Courant reported in June 1909 that the Lambs acquired a site from the Medcef Eden Realty Company at 120–126 West 44th Street, with plans to develop an 18-story clubhouse there. Two months later, the club formed a committee to develop a new clubhouse; the committee considered leasing the Berkeley Lyceum at 21–25 West 44th Street. The club decided in December 1909 to lease
10611-516: The existing buildings. In 1992, the Times Square Alliance (formerly the Times Square Business Improvement District , or "BID" for short), a coalition of city government and local businesses dedicated to improving the quality of commerce and cleanliness in the district, started operations in the area. In 1998, the alliance opened a tourist information center in the former Embassy Theatre at 1560 Broadway;
10742-400: The facade and other parts of the interior would be preserved. The church attempted to sell the site's unused air rights , which totaled 75,000 sq ft (7,000 m), but there was no adjacent site to which the air rights could be transferred. Afterward, the church asked the LPC to designate the interior of the building's interior as a landmark, as the air rights of interior landmarks in
10873-399: The facade is clad with smooth marble, while the upper stories are clad with red Flemish-bond brick, terracotta trim, and stone quoins at each end. The clubhouse's interior was originally designed in the Federal style , with club rooms on the lower stories and bedrooms for club members on the upper stories. The club rooms included auditoriums on the first and third floors; a dining room on
11004-487: The first half of the 19th century, it became one of the prized possessions of John Jacob Astor , who made a second fortune selling off lots to hotels and other real estate concerns as the city rapidly spread uptown . By 1872, the area had become the center of New York's horse carriage industry. The locality had not previously been given a name, and city authorities called it Longacre Square after Long Acre in London, where
11135-400: The headquarters, raising $ 131,250. In addition, the club planned to open a new restaurant and host commercially produced plays. That month, the club successfully petitioned the court to extend the mortgage's due date yet again. The clubhouse was sold at auction the next month to the Tremont Savings and Loan Association for $ 350,000, even though the building had been appraised at $ 1.2 million just
11266-701: The horse and carriage trade was centered in that city. William Henry Vanderbilt owned and ran the American Horse Exchange there. In 1910, it became the Winter Garden Theatre. As more profitable commerce and industrialization of Lower Manhattan pushed homes, theaters, and prostitution northward from the Tenderloin District , Longacre Square became nicknamed the Thieves Lair for its rollicking reputation as
11397-530: The hotel "toasts the 'golden age of travel'". A reviewer for the Toronto Star characterized the hotel as an "intimate 76-room property that seamlessly blends the charm of the past and the creature comforts of the present". Another reviewer, writing for The Independent , said the hotel's main draw was "enjoying the peaceful luxury of the hotel while knowing the excitement of Manhattan is right on your doorstep", despite its relatively high room rates, and that
11528-669: The hotel as a boutique hotel called the Lambs Hotel, ultimately renamed it the Chatwal New York. Chatwal signed a franchise agreement with hotel management company Starwood , and the Chatwal New York joined Starwood's Luxury Collection brand. The renovation ultimately cost more than $ 100 million. The Chatwal New York opened in August 2010 with 83 rooms. The Lambs Club restaurant at the hotel, which had been announced in 2008, ultimately opened in September 2010 with Geoffrey Zakarian as executive chef. The restaurant, operated by Chatwal,
11659-476: The hotel was suitable mainly for "romantic weekends, luxury city getaways and work with perks". A reporter for the British newspaper The Observer praised the hotel as having "the kind of elegance and luxury any self-respecting flapper girl would expect", but the reporter criticized the high prices of the spa and pool. When the Lambs Club restaurant opened in 2010, Sam Sifton of The New York Times wrote that
11790-718: The information center operated until 2014. In the mid-1990s, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani led an effort to clean up the area, an effort that is described by Steve Macek in Urban Nightmares: The Media, the Right, and the Moral Panic Over the City : Security was increased, pornographic theatres were closed, and "undesirable" low-rent residents were pressured to relocate, and then more tourist-friendly attractions and upscale establishments were opened. Advocates of
11921-456: The interior of the Lambs Club as a landmark, and Hampshire Hotels was devising plans for a new theater in the Lambs Club building. The church and theater continued to operate, but the church's soup kitchen relocated to Brooklyn in 2001. According to pastor John Bowen, the building was physically deteriorating, and the partnership with Hampshire Hotels would allow the church to offer a wider range of programs. The church continued to host services in
12052-469: The largest gathering in Times Square since August 1945 during celebrations marking the end of World War II . On December 31, 1907, a ball signifying New Year's Day was first dropped at Times Square, and the Square has held the main New Year's celebration in New York City ever since. On that night, hundreds of thousands of people congregate to watch the Waterford Crystal ball being lowered on
12183-555: The late 1990s, the Church of the Nazarene did not have enough money for both the building's maintenance and the church's social-service programs. This prompted the church's pastor, the Rev. John Calhoun, to announce in early 1999 that he was negotiating with Hampshire Hotels and Resorts to turn the building into a 108-room hotel. The plans necessitated the demolition of the Lamb's Theatre, although
12314-440: The new clubhouse in February 1928 after a committee deemed the project "inadvisable", citing the fact that the planned clubhouse would be unprofitable. During the late 1920s, the Lambs faced financial troubles because of competition from talking pictures . Some members could not afford to pay dues because they were unemployed, while others had been cast in film roles and had gone to Hollywood. The club took out two mortgage loans on
12445-483: The newspaper's operations to a new skyscraper on 42nd Street at Longacre Square, on the site of the former Pabst Hotel , which had existed on the site for less than a decade since it opened in November 1899. Ochs persuaded Mayor George B. McClellan Jr. to construct a subway station there, and the area was renamed "Times Square" on April 8, 1904. Just three weeks later, the first electrified advertisement appeared on
12576-450: The number of people traveling to Times Square. About 108,000 pedestrians visited Times Square each day in late 2020 compared to the 380,000 before the pandemic. From March to October 2020, 26 of the area's 46 hotels closed, as well as 39 of 151 stores and 84 of 162 restaurants. Times Square was closed to the public for New Year's Day 2021 and observers were dispersed into enclosures measuring 8 by 8 ft (2.4 by 2.4 m). Times Square
12707-415: The outdoors smoking ban to the area. The measure imposed a $ 50 fine for any person caught smoking within the area. From January 29 to February 1, 2014, a "Super Bowl Boulevard" was held on Broadway, especially in Times Square, between 34th and 47th Streets, as part of Super Bowl XLVIII . The boulevard contained activities such as autographs, a 60 ft (18 m)-high toboggan run , and photographs with
12838-499: The plaza in 2010, hiring the design and landscaping firm Snøhetta to permanently replace Broadway's roadway with custom-made granite pavers and benches. By December 2013, the first phase of the Times Square pedestrian plaza had been completed at the southern end of the square in time for the Times Square Ball drop on New Year's Eve. The project was originally intended to be completed by the end of 2015. The entire project
12969-399: The previous owner of the two plots, was expected to remain at that site for a year. The Lambs took title to the site in April 1903 and hired White the same year to design the building. Plans for the new clubhouse were filed with the Manhattan Bureau of Buildings on March 1, 1904, at which point the structure was to cost $ 100,000. That month, True and McKeefrey received the general contract for
13100-512: The previous year. The bank won a bidding war against Giovanna Ceccarelli of the St. Genesius Society, who had bid $ 301,000 and had wanted to host a repertory theater group at the building. Even after the Lambs Club Building had been sold, the club still owed its suppliers $ 100,000. To satisfy a deficit of $ 473,112, the bank immediately placed the building for sale, although the bank was not scheduled to take title until February 20. The Manhattan Church of
13231-466: The project in 1986. Furthermore, as part of the West Midtown special zoning district created in 1982, the New York City government had allowed new buildings in Times Square to be developed with an increased floor area ratio. To ensure the area would not be darkened at nightfall, the city passed zoning regulations that encouraged developers to add large, bright signs on their buildings. In 1990,
13362-500: The proposal. In June 2016, work started on "pedestrian flow zones" where no one was allowed to loiter, as well as "activity zones" where costumed characters were allowed to perform. There have been several incidents in Times Square: Times Square is the most visited place globally with 360,000 pedestrian visitors a day, amounting to over 131 million a year. As of 2013 , it had a greater attendance than each of
13493-555: The proposed buildings, led government officials to allow Prudential and Park Tower to postpone the project in 1992. By then, Prudential had spent $ 300 million on condemning the sites through eminent domain . The partners retained the right to develop the sites in the future, and the ESDC's zoning guidelines remained in effect. In exchange for being permitted to delay construction of the sites until 2002, Prudential and Park Tower were compelled to add stores and install large signage on
13624-418: The restaurant was reminiscent of the nearby Sardi's and that "the Lambs Club dinner menu offers food to fortify the hearty as well as to charm those who eat only appetizers and head to the gym". Times reporter Frank Bruni wrote that the restaurant's bar "claims that decorative sweet spot between homage and spoof"; another Times reporter described the space itself as "a sophisticated, high-ceilinged room in
13755-449: The right to acquire the sites at the southwest and southeast corners of 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue for $ 330 million. 5 Times Square was completed on the southwest-corner site in 2002, and Times Square Tower opened on the southeast-corner site in 2004. Times Square now boasts attractions such as ABC 's Times Square Studios , where Good Morning America is broadcast live; competing Hershey's and M&M's stores across
13886-418: The safety of the area. The theatres of Broadway and the huge number of animated neon and LED signs have been one of New York's iconic images as well as a symbol of the intensely urban aspects of Manhattan. Since 1987 such signage has been mandated by zoning ordinances that require building owners to display illuminated signs, the only district in New York City with this requirement. The neighborhood has
14017-416: The second floor; and a library and banquet room on the third floor. When the building was converted into a hotel, the first and second floors were converted into a bar and restaurant called the Lambs Club, while the upper floors were converted into 83 guestrooms. The Lambs were founded in 1874 and relocated to multiple buildings over the years. By 1902, overcrowding at the club's previous headquarters prompted
14148-514: The second-floor memorial alcove and some of the decorative details. There is a cocktail bar in the modern-day hotel's lobby. The first and second stories contain a two-level restaurant called the Lambs Club, which is owned separately from the hotel. The restaurant space retains many of the original design elements, such as a large fireplace, red banquettes, and portraits of the Lambs' shepherds; it also has modern design elements, including red benches that are patterned after Broadway theaters' seats. There
14279-585: The side of a bank at the corner of 46th Street and Broadway. The north end later became Duffy Square, and the former Horse Exchange became the Winter Garden Theatre , constructed in 1911. The New York Times moved to more spacious offices one block west of the square in 1913 and sold the building in 1961. The old Times Building was later named the Allied Chemical Building in 1963. Now known simply as One Times Square , it
14410-466: The site at the northeast corner of Broadway and 42nd Street, and he developed 4 Times Square there. The northwest corner of Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street was taken by Reuters , which enlisted Rudin Management as its development partner and built 3 Times Square on that corner; that building opened in 2001. In 1998, a joint venture of Klein, The Blackstone Group , and Boston Properties won
14541-638: The south, and 1500 Broadway is to the west. Other nearby buildings include 1530 Broadway to the northwest; Millennium Times Square New York , the Hudson Theatre , and the Hotel Gerard to the north; the Belasco Theatre to the northeast; and 4 Times Square and the Bank of America Tower to the south. The building occupies its entire site of 76 by 100 ft (23 by 30 m). When it
14672-481: The spaces "have the warm and friendly look of an Elizabethan tavern". According to a 1974 Variety article, comedian Joe Laurie Jr. had bequeathed $ 1,000 in his will to pay for indigent members' drinks; although Laurie's bequest had been exhausted by then, the club's bartenders continued to cover the cost of a member's drink if he could not afford it. The annex contained a theater on its ground floor, which contained 140 seats when it closed in 2006. The second floor had
14803-511: The street from each other, and multiple multiplex movie theaters. Additionally, the area contains restaurants such as the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company , a seafood establishment; Planet Hollywood Restaurant and Bar , a theme restaurant ; and Carmine's, serving Italian cuisine . It has also attracted several large financial, publishing, and media firms to set up headquarters in the area. A larger presence of police has improved
14934-527: The third-floor auditorium for the first time ever. Women were still banned from other events at the clubhouse, including art exhibits. During World War II, the clubhouse hosted weekly dinners for members of the United States Armed Forces . The club unveiled a memorial alcove at the clubhouse in 1947, dedicated to club members who had died in the two world wars. The Lambs had 1,300 members in the late 1950s. Cosmopolitan magazine described
15065-436: The third-floor theater through 2006, while the Lamb's Theatre company staged plays in both of the building's theaters. The building also contained five apartments and 22 single-person rooms at that point. In 2006, Hampshire Hotels had exercised its option to develop the hotel, and Manhattan Initiative evicted the Lamb's Theatre. At the time, real-estate values in New York City had recovered after having declined sharply following
15196-485: The toilets once a week. The hotel reopened in October 2021, but its restaurant remained closed to the general public, serving only hotel guests. The Lambs Club restaurant reopened in April 2022. when Michael White replaced Zakarian as the executive chef. The Reuben brothers moved to take over the hotel in December 2023 after the Chatwal's operators defaulted on a mezzanine loan . According to White's grandson Samuel,
15327-635: The world's busiest pedestrian areas, it is also the hub of the Broadway Theater District and a major center of the world's entertainment industry . Times Square is one of the world's most visited tourist attractions, drawing an estimated 50 million visitors annually. Approximately 330,000 people pass through Times Square daily, many of them tourists, while over 460,000 pedestrians walk through Times Square on its busiest days. The Times Square–42nd Street and 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal stations have consistently ranked as
15458-422: Was a cast-iron fence at street level, but this had been removed by the 1980s. The second floor originally contained two groups of French windows , recessed within a loggia and flanked by a set of pilasters . Each bay is separated by columns, and there is a wrought iron balcony and a large rectangular window behind the columns. There is a plaque at the center of the second-story facade. An entablature, containing
15589-509: Was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 3, 1982. The same year, nutritionist Glenna McCollum applied for a grant from the Foundation Center of Manhattan to pay for upgrades to the church's facilities. With the redevelopment of Times Square in the late 1990s, the Lamb's Theatre began to stage more family-friendly productions at the clubhouse, and the third-floor theater was also used for live radio broadcasts. By
15720-418: Was appraised at up to $ 1 million. At the time, the club had 1,700 members, many of whom approved of the proposed relocation; furthermore, real-estate prices near Times Square were increasing. The club wanted to build a standalone theater next to its proposed clubhouse, since, at the time, city building codes prohibited clubhouses from containing theaters with more than 300 seats. The Lambs canceled their plans for
15851-546: Was built in the 1900s, the structure measured 37.5 ft (11.4 m) wide, but this was doubled in 1915. The Lambs Club Building was one of several clubhouses developed in the surrounding area during the early 20th century. The section of 44th Street just east of the Lambs Club Building is known as Club Row; when the building was developed, the Harvard Club , Yale Club , New York Yacht Club , New York City Bar Association , and Century Association all had clubhouses in
15982-432: Was converted into the Chatwal New York hotel in the 2000s and was expanded to ten stories. The hotel had 83 guestrooms when it opened; by the late 2010s, the hotel had 76 units. As part of the hotel conversion, the interior was redesigned in a modern Art Deco style. The auditorium on the third and fourth stories was demolished because it was badly deteriorated, but other components of the old clubhouse were preserved, such as
16113-546: Was dedicated in June 1939 to honor World War I chaplain Father Francis P. Duffy of the 69th New York Infantry Regiment . A statue by Charles Keck was dedicated in May 1937 as a memorial to Duffy. There is also a statue of composer and entertainer George M. Cohan , and the TKTS discount ticket booth for same-day Broadway and off-Broadway theaters that has been at the site since June 1973. When Manhattan Island
16244-614: Was developed for the Lambs , a theatrical club founded in 1874 and officially incorporated in 1877. The Lambs' first shepherd, Henry James Montague , named the club after a group founded in London; the London club was named in honor of essayist Charles Lamb , who had frequently invited actors to his home. The Lambs relocated its headquarters, or "Fold", multiple times in the late 19th century, renting space at several buildings around Union Square, Manhattan . The Lambs became known for their theatrical revues, known as "gambols", starting in 1888. The Lambs began using these gambols to raise money for
16375-501: Was finally completed just before New Year's Eve 2016. Some safety bollards were also installed as part of the renovation to prevent vehicular attacks or collisions on the sidewalk. After a 2017 vehicle-ramming attack , there were calls to install more bollards along Times Square. Times Square's pedestrian plaza is frequented by topless women (with painted breasts) called " desnudas ", as well as costumed characters , who typically panhandle for tips. The pedestrian plaza became
16506-543: Was first lit on December 4, 2008. The new 20 Times Square development hosts the largest LED signage in Times Square at 18,000 square feet. The display is 1,000 square feet larger than the Times Square Walgreens display and one of the largest video-capable screens in the world. In 2002, New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani administered the oath of office to the city's next mayor, Michael Bloomberg , at Times Square after midnight on January 1 as part of
16637-578: Was first settled by the Dutch colonists , three small streams united near what is now the intersection of 10th Avenue and 40th Street . These three streams formed the "Great Kill" (Dutch: Grote Kil ). From there the Great Kill wound through the low-lying Reed Valley, known for fish and waterfowl, and emptied into a deep bay in the Hudson River at the present 42nd Street. The name was retained in
16768-453: Was hired to draw up plans for the hotel-conversion project. The church was allowed to continue holding services and hosting events within a portion of the clubhouse. The hotel plans were controversial among the theatrical community, which had unsuccessfully fought for the preservation of several theaters on the site of the nearby New York Marriott Marquis hotel. Performers such as Lionel Hampton and Rosemary Harris advocated for designating
16899-414: Was knowledgeable of what his grandson Samuel G. White called "the acting profession's reputation for social eccentricity". The northern elevation of the facade is the only one that is normally visible from street level. The ground floor is clad with smooth marble, while the upper stories are clad with red Flemish-bond brick. The walls contain terracotta trim, with stone quoins at each end. The facade
17030-436: Was named in homage to the building's original tenant; it quickly became popular among women who worked in fashion, publishing, and hospitality. Although the Chatwal New York was much smaller than other buildings in the area, Ralph Gardner Jr. of The Wall Street Journal wrote that the hotel "aspires to make up for [this] in amenities—closets inspired by leather Vuitton-like travel trunks; Frette linens, duvets and pillows; and
17161-623: Was typically the first public building built as new villages sprang up. A meeting-house had a dual purpose as a place of worship and for public discourse, but sometimes only for "...the service of God." As the towns grew and the separation of church and state in the United States matured, the buildings that were used as the seat of local government were called town-houses or town-halls. Most communities in modern New England still have active meetinghouses, which are popular points of assembly for town meeting days and other events. The nonconformist meeting houses generally do not have steeples, with
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