Hotel Carter

Hotel Carter

Company type	Private
Industry	Hospitality
Predecessor	Dixie Hotel
Founded	June 1930 (1930-06)
Founder	Uris Buildings Corporation
Defunct	2014
Fate	Closed; acquired for renovation
Headquarters	New York City , United States
Area served	Midtown Manhattan, New York City
Key people	Tran Dinh Truong (owner from 1977 to 2012)
Products	Lodging, bus terminal (until 1957), bar, dining, theater

The Hotel Carter was a 25-story lodging establishment situated at 250 West 43rd Street, close to Times Square in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Originally opening its doors in June 1930 under the name Dixie Hotel, it initially contained roughly 1,000 guest rooms, which were later reduced to approximately 700. The structure spanned from 43rd Street down to 42nd Street, although the section facing 42nd Street has since been removed. The hotel also housed a bus terminal at street level (which ceased operations in 1957), with a bar and dining area positioned above it.

The project was developed by the Uris Buildings Corporation, with construction plans revealed in September 1928. After foreclosure by Bowery Savings Bank in 1931, the bank managed the hotel for about ten years. In 1942, it was incorporated into the Carter Hotels chain, which implemented multiple refurbishments. To improve its market standing, the hotel was renamed the Carter in October 1976. From 1977 until his passing in 2012, businessman Tran Dinh Truong managed the property, followed by GF Management until its closure in 2014. Subsequently, Joseph Chetrit acquired the hotel with renovation intentions.

Despite its prime location, Hotel Carter faced ongoing challenges due to a poor reputation stemming from frequent criminal incidents and substandard cleanliness, including at least four homicides occurring on-site. Throughout the late 2000s and early 2010s, it was repeatedly listed among the most unsanitary hotels in the United States.

Description

Upon its debut in 1930, the Dixie Hotel offered close to 1,000 rooms, which were later downsized to around 700. The building was initially designed as a 22-story structure containing between 650 and 700 guest accommodations. It featured an underground bus terminal and primarily faced 43rd Street while maintaining an additional entrance on 42nd Street.

Bus terminal

From 1930 until its closure in 1957, the hotel operated a bus depot occupying the entire ground floor. This facility included loading platforms and waiting rooms positioned approximately five feet below street level. Access was provided via two ramps for arrivals and two for departures that connected directly to both 42nd and 43rd Streets, capable of handling up to forty buses each hour. Central to the terminal was a bus turntable measuring thirty-five feet in diameter, encircled by twelve loading bays designed to streamline bus maneuvering and passenger boarding.

During busy periods, the terminal accommodated as many as 350 buses daily. Buses would drive onto the turntable, which rotated to align with an assigned loading bay. Safety measures included a recessed center on the turntable and sloped loading slips to prevent unintended bus movement. The loading platform stood about six inches above each slip to allow level entry for passengers. When departing, buses reversed onto the turntable before it rotated toward the exit ramp. An electronic signaling system regulated bus movements, while a dispatcher announced departures.

The terminal’s design ensured that all loading bays were within one hundred feet of the waiting area, which featured amenities such as a café, newsstands, ticket counters, and elevators leading up to the hotel lobby. Both waiting and boarding zones were heated using a forced-air system and ventilated near exhaust points to maintain air quality. This integrated bus terminal enhanced the hotel's operational model by offering convenient transportation services aligned with its broader hospitality offerings.

Nightclub and Theater

On the hotel's ground floor was the Dixie Lounge Bar, a nightclub that debuted in 1942, featuring Southern Colonial-style interior design by Jac Lessman. This lounge was accessible from the lobby, dining area, and street level, showcasing elements such as brick wainscoting, shuttered windows, ivy-filled planters, and columns resembling trees. Together with the adjacent Plantation Room restaurant, this combined venue could host up to 500 patrons.

The Bert Wheeler Theater was inaugurated in 1966 and was situated ten steps above its entrance level. With seating capacity ranging from 220 to 225, it occupied the space previously held by the Plantation Room, measuring 60 by 45 feet. A circular bar measuring 50 feet in diameter was located next to the theater but remained closed during shows except for intermissions. Dining service was offered through the hotel's Terrace Room restaurant.

Development and Foreclosure

In September 1928, Harris H. Uris, cofounder of Uris Buildings Corporation alongside his son Percy, purchased property at 241 West 42nd Street and 250–262 West 43rd Street for constructing a planned 25-story hotel containing 700 rooms. By May 1929, Percy and his brother Harold secured a $2.2 million construction loan from New York State Title and Mortgage Company for what would become the Hotel Dixie. Excavation commenced that same month, clearing existing tenements and a two-story taxpayer structure. The Uris brothers further expanded their property portfolio in August 1929 by acquiring a four-story building at 266 West 43rd Street; however, the adjacent lot at 264 West 43rd Street remained separate.

By mid-October 1929, steel framing was progressing for multiple floors. The brothers leased retail spaces to tenants including a laundry service, beauty salon, and barber shop. Scarr Transportation Service operated the bus terminal inside the hotel, while Loft, Inc. leased the restaurant area. Two bus companies began utilizing a temporary on-site terminal in December 1929, with the Central Union Bus Terminal officially opening in February 1930.

Although initially planned to open on May 1, 1930, the hotel incorporated that month with M.C. Levine receiving 10,000 shares. Bowery Savings Bank extended a $350,000 mortgage loan to Jerrold Holding Corporation—led by Harris Uris—which owned the hotel; this loan was later consolidated into a $1.85 million lien alongside others. The bus terminal commenced operations in May 1930, followed by the Hotel Dixie’s grand opening in June under operator S. Gregory Taylor and general manager James M. Tait. By July 1931, the bus terminal had been renamed Short Line Bus Terminal.

In October 1931, Bowery Savings Bank initiated foreclosure proceedings on the hotel’s $1.98 million mortgage loan. A federal judge appointed Irving Trust and James B. Regan as receivers to oversee management of the property. Although foreclosure auctions were planned for early 1932, these were postponed initially; when rescheduled in March, the Uris family owed $2.06 million on a hotel appraised at $2.3 million. Later that month, the bank acquired the hotel for $1.8 million.

In April 1932, Southworth Management Corporation took over operations of the hotel under Roy S. Hubbell—previously manager of Hotel Commodore and Hotel Belmont—who managed it briefly before passing away at the property in October of that year. Beginning November 1933, the hotel started hosting big band performances, with Art Kahn's orchestra among the first acts featured.

Operation under Carter Hotels

In March 1942, Kings Hotel Inc., a subsidiary of Carter Hotels, acquired the property from Bowery Savings Bank for $1.125 million. The new owners announced plans for a $200,000 refurbishment, which included updating the lobby, installing a marquee and dance floors, and renovating half of the guest rooms. Management assumed control in April 1942 and converted several rooms into studio apartments aimed at attracting business executives and couples. Jac Lessman revamped the bar into the Dixie Lounge Bar nightclub, which launched in September 1942 featuring live musical performances. By 1946, the hotel's restaurant was rebranded as the Plantation Room, offering Southern-style cuisine alongside live entertainment with artists such as Al Trace and Teddy Powell. However, live shows were discontinued in early 1947 due to financial setbacks.

Following the inauguration of the Port Authority Bus Terminal in 1950, most bus lines that previously operated at the hotel's ground-floor terminal relocated there. Although a decade-long lease was signed in 1947, the Dixie terminal ceased operations in 1957 as the remaining bus lines moved away. In 1961, the Walter Ballard Company transformed the former bus terminal space into a parking facility accompanied by a secondary lobby featuring a registration area and a communication system that enabled drivers to summon bellhops through closed-circuit television.

By 1964, proposals emerged from local groups to demolish the Dixie and adjacent theaters to make way for a convention center development. In response, Carter Hotels undertook a comprehensive renovation in 1965, refurbishing all 700 rooms and integrating closed-circuit television along with automated elevators. William Benson managed the hotel until his passing in 1967. The Bert Wheeler Theater opened within the hotel premises in October 1966 with the musical comedy Autumn's Here. It was renamed the Burstein Theater in 1973 and began showcasing Yiddish productions.

During Times Square’s decline throughout the 1970s, Carter Hotels invested $250,000 to update both the hotel's facilities and signage to enhance its reputation. Company president H.B. Cantor aimed to consolidate brand identity across their Northeast holdings by rebranding the Dixie as the Carter Hotel in 1976, marking a strategic corporate repositioning.

Developments in the 1970s and 1980s

In October 1977, Vietnamese entrepreneur and former ship owner Tran Dinh Truong acquired the hotel for $1.5 million through his Alphonse Hotel Corporation. He closed off access via the 42nd Street entrance and appointed Walter Scheff as general manager. At that time, the hotel primarily served middle-income tourists but was experiencing financial losses. Over thirty years, numerous members of Tran’s family resided within the hotel. The theater remained active throughout the 1980s with productions including Aesop's Fables (1979) and Ka-Boom! (1980).

Although New York's Urban Development Corporation proposed redevelopment plans for parts of West 42nd Street in 1981, these did not include the Carter Hotel. During this decade, it functioned as a welfare hotel accommodating homeless families; the city paid $62.62 per night for each family occupying small rooms. By December 1983, approximately 190 families lived there despite ongoing health and safety violations. After repeated noncompliance with regulations, city authorities initiated legal action against the hotel, resulting in Tran being held in contempt of court.

Due to worsening conditions, city officials ceased placing homeless individuals at the hotel in 1984; redevelopment authorities dubbed it "Nightmare Alley." By late 1985, occupancy by homeless families dropped from around 300 to just 61 as efforts were made to appeal once more to tourists. All homeless residents had been relocated by 1988 amid persistent issues with plumbing, electrical systems, security concerns, and pest infestations—problems that also discouraged organizations like the American Red Cross from establishing shelters on-site.

The hotel's bar, Rose of Saigon, was shut down in early 1989 following law enforcement discoveries of open crack cocaine sales; officials described it as one of the city's worst bars encountered during enforcement operations.

1990s to 2010s

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Hotel Carter leased several floors to the International Travellers Network and Penthouse Hostel, catering primarily to budget-conscious visitors. Although Times Square underwent significant revitalization, the hotel itself remained in a state of disrepair and, by 1994, was labeled New York City's most hazardous hotel due to rampant criminal activity. In 1998, the New York City Department of Buildings cited the hotel for facade deficiencies, resulting in a temporary shutdown amid safety concerns.

Throughout the mid-2000s, the establishment's reputation suffered further because of persistent issues with cleanliness and upkeep. Between 2006 and 2009, TripAdvisor repeatedly identified it as the most unsanitary hotel in the United States. In 2009, a lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court against the hotel's operators for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), highlighting inaccessible entrances and facilities; this legal matter was resolved later that year.

Starting in 2006, manager Erwin M. Lumanglas allocated roughly $5,000 per room toward renovations by 2010, which temporarily improved conditions enough for the hotel to fall off TripAdvisor’s dirtiest rankings. Nevertheless, it resurfaced as the fourth most unclean hotel in 2011. Although TripAdvisor discontinued publishing these rankings after 2012, guest grievances regarding hygiene persisted, adversely affecting both the hotel's reputation and operational performance.

Sale and closure

Following Tran's passing in 2012, disputes arose among his heirs over ownership rights of the hotel. In April 2013, John Cruz of GF Management purchased the property and commenced refurbishment efforts. At acquisition, the hotel faced numerous challenges including malfunctioning elevators, outdated fire extinguishers, broken exit signs, insufficient insurance coverage, and delinquent loans. GF Management remedied fifteen municipal code violations, enhanced housekeeping routines, updated guest rooms with contemporary furnishings, and replaced mattresses to combat bedbug infestations. These improvements led to an occupancy increase from 68% to 74%, with nightly rates climbing to between $120 and $150.

After completing substantial renovations, the property was listed for sale in early 2014. Market analyses estimated a potential sale price up to $180 million; however, prospective buyers were expected to invest an additional $100–$125 million in further upgrades. Despite legal opposition from a tenant operating a gentlemen’s club on site, developer Joseph Chetrit secured purchase rights in September 2014. Chetrit finalized the $191.9 million transaction in February 2015, financed through a $129 million loan from Athene Annuity and Life Company.

In February 2018, JPMorgan Chase extended a mezzanine loan of $152 million, which was supplanted in August 2022 by $185 million in construction financing provided by Mack Real Estate. Early in 2024, the city initiated litigation against Chetrit's ownership concerning a sidewalk shed that had remained outside the hotel for over ten years. By September 2024, Chetrit Group defaulted on its mezzanine loan; subsequently in January 2025, Mack Real Estate filed suit seeking foreclosure on $223 million owed. Furthermore, in July 2025, city authorities sued the Chetrits for more than 150 building-code violations associated with the property.

Critical reception

In 1980, Newsday characterized the hotel as a "large, un-self-conscious, family-oriented" establishment offering "simple and spotlessly clean" accommodations. However, by the early 2000s media coverage frequently criticized its hygiene standards; for instance, in July 2009, the Glenn Beck Program spotlighted issues related to filth and neglect while USA Today reported infestations including "roaches, rats, black mold and stains of dubious origin." Despite such critiques, the hotel maintained popularity among budget travelers such as students and international visitors. In 2005, The New York Times observed that it provided "a cheap room in an expensive city, and something more: an adventure." By 2014, New York magazine described it as a vestige of Times Square’s former era marked by vice and decline.

Deaths

Multiple fatal incidents have occurred within the hotel premises. In 1983, a 25-day-old baby was fatally assaulted by her father, who lived at the hotel. Four years later, in 1987, a woman died after falling from a window on the highest floor following a dispute in room 1604. In 1999, the night manager lost his life during an altercation near the reception area; a clerk was subsequently accused of his murder. In 2007, the remains of aspiring model Kristine Yitref were discovered concealed beneath a bed inside plastic bags, leading to charges against convicted sex offender Clarence Dean for her death.

External links

• www.hotelcarter.com ^{(Archived 22 May 2015)}
• Dixie Bus Terminal, New York City, 1929