Inside mind-bending plan for monumental 1,200ft ‘Hotel Attraction’ that would have changed iconic NYC skyline forever

8 months ago 5
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INCREDIBLE plans have been revealed for the monumental 1,200ft hotel in the heart of Manhattan that would have changed the iconic NYC skyline forever.

With a design that was way ahead of its time, Grand Hotel Attraction would have been the tallest building in the country, had it been built.

Ephemeral New York
The sketch of the futuristic hotel that was never built[/caption]
Never Was
An artist’s creation of what the New York skyline would have looked like if the hotel was built[/caption]
Ephemeral New York
The hotel would have made the tallest building in America[/caption]
On Verticality
Re-created Blueprint of the hotel[/caption]

Plans were drawn up in 1908 when two unnamed businessmen from America approached the legendary Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi

At the time, rich folks of the world were busy decorating the skyline of New York City – and Gaudi was asked to build up something unique.

The genius architect, whose Catalan Modernist designs were unlike anything in America, prepared the sketches of what could have changed the skyline of New York forever.

Gaudi’s design, which was way ahead of its time, included a castle-like structure of multiple conical towers rising 1,200 ft feet into the sky.

The hotel was planned as a downtown playhouse for the wealthy of Manhatten – with lavishly built guest rooms and multiple restaurants that spread across six floors.

A large theatre and lecture hall were also included in the blueprints, so were multiple galleries that would have hosted the best art exhibitions in the world.

At the peak, Gaudí placed a panoramic sphere where people could go and cherish 360-degree views of the city.

Sadly, the iconic plans for the hotel were never the light of day – and the sketches were forgotten for decades after Gaudi died in 1926.

Reports suggest the hotel was proposed to be built on Ground Zero – exactly where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre once stood.

Others however say it was proposed for an unspecified Lower Manhattan site.

But everyone believed the design was too unrealistic for the time, which is thought to be one of the reasons why the building never got built.

Another story says that Gaudi, who was a communist, disagreed with the businessmen’s desires to cater to the wealthy and abandoned the project over ethics.

Today, only a few conceptual sketches of the hotel that could have changed America exist.

In 2010, the building was virtually re-created in an episode of the sci-fi TV show Fringe.

It comes after stunning plans for a whopping $12billion skyscraper casino resort in New York City were revealed.

The mega complex would stand 80-storeys tall and could completely revamp the city’s iconic skyline forever – but developers might face a major struggle to get it built.

The ambitious project, dubbed Wynn New York City, has been virtually designed alongside real estate kingpins Related Companies and could sit on the West Side of Manhattan.

Alongside it will be two other tall towers – taking up an almighty 13-acre.

The casino resort will be packed in across the bottom five floors of the main skyscraper with luxury hotels for guests completing the huge build.

Elsewhere a fancy ballroom and spacious conference rooms will occupy several floors as well as hundreds of shops and restaurants.

The second tower will be made up of a 1,400ft office block.

As the third giant building is set to house 1,500 apartments with the top floor being over 1,200ft in the air, claim the plans.

There is also believed to be a public school that can hold 750 students within the grounds alongside a big community centre and day care area for young ones. 

AP:Associated Press
The building was virtually re-created in an episode of the sci-fi TV show Fringe[/caption]
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