ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A new boutique hotel expected to bring new life to downtown Allentown will open early next year, according to its developer — a little later than expected.
City Center broke ground last October on a five-story, 140-room hotel at the northeast corner of 10th and Hamilton streets after a row of empty buildings was demolished.
The 55,000-square-foot hotel is due to feature a ground-floor bar and restaurant, with guest rooms on the top four floors.
Demolition was due to last from April-June 2023, with construction crews to start work that summer.
Changing timeline
For much of 2023, The Moxy's completion date always seemed about a year away.
City Center presented plans to Allentown officials last year that showed The Moxy was on a similar opening timeline with The Archer Music Hall, the developer’s other project on the 900 block of Hamilton Street.
Company executives in March 2023 said the venue was scheduled to open in spring 2024. By July 2023, that opening was pushed back to summer 2024.
And in October, City Center President J.B. Reilly said the hotel and venue were on track to be completed this fall, with both to open around the same time.
Reilly made that projection while announcing Marriot would operate the boutique hotel under it Moxy brand when it opens.
Both properties are now expected to open in the first quarter of 2025, company representatives told dozens of people Thursday during a tour of the sites.
A banner on a security fence around the construction site still says the hotel will open in summer 2024.
Jeff Vaughan, who coordinates communications for City Center, said construction at the boutique hotel is due to wrap up in the coming months before The Moxy trains its new staff ahead of a January 2025 opening.
“We will be ready to open later this fall, but we think the optimal time to open this hotel is in January, after the holidays,” he said in a statement to LehighValleyNews.com.
City Center executives have said the hotel project — projected to cost $27 million — will generate 31 new permanent jobs and 75 construction-related jobs.
The hotel is set to generate about $185,000 in annual property taxes, almost six times more than the now-demolished buildings generated for the city.
The Archer Music Hall
Vaughan did not answer questions from LehighValleyNews.com about The Moxy’s delayed opening or provide an update on The Archer's progress.
The 31,000-square-foot music venue at 939 Hamilton St. is being built to accommodate more than 1,500 guests. City Center hopes it will be something of a replacement for the former Crocodile Rock, which closed in 2015.
It’s designed to attract events and artists that can’t sell out the PPL Center, which has a capacity of about 10,000 people.
The Archer also is set to feature a small second-floor stage for more intimate performances.
A company executive last year said he expects the new venue “is going to draw hundreds of thousands of visitors annually through the front doors."
Live Nation is expected to bring acts to The Archer Music Hall, according to sources. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly of the deal.
Signing an operator/promoter is a major step for the developer as it works to open the new venue.
Promoters are responsible for booking acts, presenting live entertainment, including concerts and comedy shows, and marketing those events.
