Thursday, April 24, 2014

Two Worlds























Hotels continue to rise on 39th street.  Between 4th and 5th there's already a Days Inn, and up the block from it the spacey Hotel 459 takes shape.  There are three more hotels higher up 39th and a Comfort Inn over on 38th.  This latest addition seems to be a fancier looking number than the others, though it's often hard to tell from construction fence pictures.  The hotels on this block flank the Center for Family Life and the Resource Training & Counseling Center, organizations that have been active in Sunset Park for decades, offering a variety of services such as substance abuse counseling, after school education, ESOL classes, job search help,, family counseling, and advocacy.
The rendering of 459 up there on the fence puts a convertible up front & nothing but sky behind the hotel.  There's no sign of next door neighbors and nothing of the block's mixed-style, mixed- use setting.  The real street is hardly so serene - it's too busy getting on with ordinary life. This is a firehouse and bus route block, with plenty of traffic.  Along with the social service buildings and residential housing (mixed frame and brick) there's a range of businesses: immigration law offices, auto centers, deli, cafe, Chinese takeout, Domino's & TD bank down at Fourth.  The Clean Rite/Pawn Rite laundry and pawnshop directly faces 459, so guests may find this comes in handy.

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