Metropolitan West, a new event space from the team behind Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea, opens September 1. The 24,000-square-foot former bagel factory has two levels that each hold 700 people for receptions or 600 theater-style. Located just off the West Side Highway, the space has large windows that offer natural light as well as views of the the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. Other amenities include catering prep rooms, greenrooms, full audiovisual services, eco-friendly touches such as LED lights and bamboo and concrete flooring, and a loading entrance large enough to accommodate cars. Plans for a rooftop deck are in the works.
New York Hilton Midtown, home to the city's largest hotel ballroom, is renovating the space as part of a larger set of upgrades to the property. The Grand Ballroom, which has more than 25,000 square feet of space, seats 2,800 or holds 3,300 theater-style. The project is expected to wrap up this fall. The hotel also is renovating its 1,985 rooms, an effort scheduled to finish by 2016.
