This is the first look at the new luxury hotel planned for TriBeCa by movie star Robert De Niro.
The actor and his partner, developer Ira Drukier, hope to break ground on the project before the end of the year, with the help of special tax-free Liberty Bonds authorized by Congress to spur downtown recovery after the 9/11 terror attack.
Designed by architect David Rockwell, the 83-room hotel at Greenwich and North Moore streets is meant to fit into TriBeCa’s landmark district.
The six-story boutique hostelry – which has not yet been named – will be made of brick, with working wooden shutters on many rooms and a steel canopy that wraps around the building.
The design was approved by the Landmarks Commission in July.
The hotel will rise on what is currently a parking lot, next to the Greenwich Street building that houses the “Analyze This” star’s Tribeca Grill restaurant and his film production company.
The hotel is expected to open in 2005. It will also include a restaurant.
De Niro, who is fighting prostate cancer, appeared last week with Gov. Pataki, who announced the hotel project in a speech on lower Manhattan rebuilding.
Drukier, De Niro’s partner, has a long track record of establishing successful boutique hotels, including the Maritime Hotel at Ninth Avenue and 16th Street, the Mercer Hotel in SoHo and the Chambers Hotel in Midtown.
To fund the $43 million project, the partners have applied to the state for permission to issue $38.9 million in Liberty Bonds.
The bonds provide developers with a form of relatively inexpensive financing. They can be issued at a lower interest rate than conventional bonds because they are exempt from federal, state and city taxes.
Drukier already plans to use Liberty Bonds for another project he is involved in – the renovation of the historic building at 90 West St., adjacent to Ground Zero.
That building was badly damaged on 9/11 and is being completely rehabbed and converted to luxury apartments.
Drukier and his partners at 90 West St. have received clearance from the city for $100 million in Liberty Bond financing, although the bonds have not yet been issued.