NYC hotel owner refuses to boot locals

USATODAY

UPDATE, 5:30 p.m.: The 2012 New York Marathon has been canceled.

ORIGINAL POST: The owner of a Hilton Garden Inn hotel in Staten Island refuses to kick out his current guests, who lost their homes to superstorm Sandy, to runners arriving for Sunday's New York City Marathon.

Hotel owner Richard Nicotra told Hotel Check-In Friday afternoon that local residents are relying on his hotel while they remain homeless due to the storm and that he won't let them down.

Both Nicotra and his wife are second-generation Staten Island residents. Local cable channel NY1 first reported the story on Thursday.

"We opened up the doors to our hotels on Saturday and Sunday for people, and everybody anticipated being here for Monday night when the storm happened," Nicotra says. "They were hoping to go back to their houses. Tuesday was supposed to be a little better and Wednesday was supposed to be fine, but by Wednesday, we started to realize it was worse than we thought."

At first the hotel was telling guests that they would have to leave by Thursday, because they were sold out with marathon runners. But on Thursday morning, Nicotra's guests were in tears at the thought of checking out, he says.

"On Thursday morning, people were begging me and crying saying 'You can't throw me out. I have no place to go,'" he says.

Nicotra said he then contacted the marathon's organizers, the New York Road Runners, because they had a contract for rooms and told them "we have a problem here" and that "we can't just throw them out." Nicotra said he gave the group other options, including setting up a temporary dormitory in the hotel's 10,000-square-foot ballroom, which can house up to 500 people with cots.

"As Hilton says, hospitality is what we're all about. If we can make everyone happy we will, but if we can't, the choice is easy," Nicotra says. "We need to take care of our neighbors."

As a result of the NY1 story on Thursday, the hotel has seen a strong response on social media - almost all supportive, says Kristine Garlisi, spokeswoman for the Hilton Garden Inn in Staten Island's Bloomfield neighborhood.

"Hundreds of people" wrote in on the hotel's Facebook page to show their support, she says.

The reaction illustrates the challenge that New York faces in housing both local victims of Sandy and out-of-town visitors who can help bolster the economy. In announcing his decision to go ahead with the marathon two days ago, Mayor Michael Bloomberg cited the event's economic impact.

The city-wide event traditionally attracts about 50,000 runners, including many from out of town who travel with friends or relatives, stay in hotels and spend money on restaurants.

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But the challenge is housing all of the runners who will show up.

Many hotels are filled with locals whose homes aren't habitable and out-of-town visitors who have not been able to fly back home because of the backlog caused by multi-day airport closures - two groups that keep extending their stays.

Meanwhile, marathon runners and their supporters had booked hotels months ago specifically so they could participate in the high-profile, annual event.

Among the hotels that do have room: The Pod Hotel on East 39th Street, which is selling rooms without electricity for around $160 a night.

Some runners conflicted

Baltimore-based marathon runner Ryan McGrath, 31, cohost of a radio show about running, told Hotel Check-In that he still plans to run Sunday's marathon, which will be his second in New York.

"When the mayor announced on Wednesday that (the marathon) was still going to be held, there was a very small percentage of people who were supportive," he says. "The biggest concern is the ethical dilemma of displacing people who are without homes who are staying in hotels."

But McGrath has been affected by Sandy, too. Before the storm, he'd planned to stay with his parents who live near the battered beach town of Sea Bright, N.J., but their home lost power. So now he's trying to find lodging. Some of his friends had reserved hotel rooms months ago - yet now are unsure whether the hotels are open or will have availability to check them in.

"Everything has been wiped out in our town," McGrath says. "It's not like I'm sitting here from a 30,000 foot view saying nothing's affected me. It's important for the city not only to move on and put on that tough New York attitude, but also from a financial perspective. I think a lot of of the people who are very angry aren't runners."

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