Donald and Ivanka Trump unveil plans for glitzy hotel at Old Post Office Pavilion.
Some 40 years ago it was considered the ugly duckling downtown, a dated building that needed to be demolished to make way for a new complex of beaux-arts-style federal offices.
Now the Old Post Office Pavilion is primed to become the pinnacle of Washington luxury, a hotel by Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka outfitted with 271 guest rooms, a massive ballroom, high-end restaurants and two opulent suites in what were once the offices of the postmaster general.
In early August, the Trumps signed a 60-year lease with the federal government for the 114-year-old building, and on Tuesday morning, they unveiled room and meeting space designs that they vowed would make it a destination for Washington power brokers, international visitors and luxury travelers.
Donald Trump repeatedly asserted during 18 months of negotiations that profit was not his driving motive in pursuing the project, and on Tuesday, he likened the Old Post Office to “a great painting.”
“Friends of mine, they spend these ridiculous amounts of money on paintings,” he said. “I’d rather do jobs like this, and do something really that the world can cherish and the world can see and that everyone in D.C. can truly be proud of. And that’s what we’re going to do.”
The overhaul is expected to cost $200 million. Inside the main entrance — a space long occupied by T-shirt and hot dog vendors — the Trumps plan a lobby and lounge with a central fountain, hand-woven rugs and brass-and-crystal chandeliers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/first-look-inside-the-planned-trump-hotel/2013/09/10/e316d112-1a2d-11e3-82ef-a059e54c49d0_story.html
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