OFFICIAL - Loews Convention Hotel (formerly Hyatt)

[GRID]

It's not going to be taller than the Power & Light Building, but it might not be too far off.

I think each level in the two main tower blocks is the height of two of the dark window panes. So the plinth is four stories (with a double-height ground floor), there's a mezzanine level above that before the first tower block, which is six stories (to the eleventh); then there's another mezzanine level, and the higher block is eleven stories (to the 23rd). Something like that.

Then there's a two- or three-story utility level/screen/sign on the roof. And the building site is atop a hill whose peak south of Truman & Wyandotte is roughly three (or even four) stories above the street level of a couple of blocks northeast inside the loop. So at 23-ish floors, it's going to look like a 30-story building on the skyline.

Plus, the renderings are all from a southern vantage, so the hotel is in the fore- or mid-ground, which makes it look taller compared to the Power & Light Building and other structures behind it. ...

This is the what I figured too, but there is no way that rendering is only 23 floors. The rendering is either very wrong or they got the number of floors wrong from the developers. The Crown Plaza is only a few blocks away and it's 30 floors. From all the renderings, this tower is at least 30 floors as rendered and looks to be more like 40. So something is not right. A 23 story tower would look very different from these same perspectives (about half as tall).

[KCLover]

It's not going to be taller than the Power & Light Building, but it might not be too far off.

I think each level in the two main tower blocks is the height of two of the dark window panes. So the plinth is four stories (with a double-height ground floor), there's a mezzanine level above that before the first tower block, which is six stories (to the eleventh); then there's another mezzanine level, and the higher offset block is eleven stories (to the 23rd). Something like that.

Then there's a two- or three-story utility level/screen/sign on the roof. And the building site is atop a hill whose peak south of Truman & Wyandotte is roughly three (or even four) stories above the street level of a couple of blocks northeast inside the loop.

So altogether, at 23-ish floors, it's going to look like a 30-story building on the skyline. ... Plus, the renderings are all from a southern vantage, so the hotel is in the fore- or mid-ground, which makes it look taller compared to the Power & Light Building and other structures behind it. ...

This is plausible, I think you're right. 2 dark squares = 1 story. That mixed with the vantage point and the fact that it's going to be built on a little hill would be why it appears taller than P&L.

[Cheffreygo]

Reading KC Star comments is so infuriating. Why do I keep doing it? What a buzzkill.

[mister816]

Reading KC Star comments is so infuriating. Why do I keep doing it? What a buzzkill.

try going to TKC.... it all slipped into a conversation about how much the posters hate n-words and why they wont hire them. but i digress, this is going to be awesome.

[KCLover]

It's not going to be taller than the Power & Light Building, but it might not be too far off.

I think each level in the two main tower blocks is the height of two of the dark window panes. So the plinth is four stories (with a double-height ground floor), there's a mezzanine level above that before the first tower block, which is six stories (to the eleventh); then there's another mezzanine level, and the higher block is eleven stories (to the 23rd). Something like that.

Then there's a two- or three-story utility level/screen/sign on the roof. And the building site is atop a hill whose peak south of Truman & Wyandotte is roughly three (or even four) stories above the street level of a couple of blocks northeast inside the loop. So at 23-ish floors, it's going to look like a 30-story building on the skyline.

Plus, the renderings are all from a southern vantage, so the hotel is in the fore- or mid-ground, which makes it look taller compared to the Power & Light Building and other structures behind it. ...

This is the what I figured too, but there is no way that rendering is only 23 floors. The rendering is either very wrong or they got the number of floors wrong from the developers. The Crown Plaza is only a few blocks away and it's 30 floors. From all the renderings, this tower is at least 30 floors as rendered and looks to be more like 40. So something is not right. A 23 story tower would look very different from these same perspectives (about half as tall).

This is also plausible. I still am siding more with the rendering is way off or it's going to be taller than 23 stories.

And even if I went with Pash's theory of 2 window panes is really 1 story, then the height is still there. It's at least the same height as the P&L tower at 481' tall.
That divided that by 23 stories = that makes the average ceiling height 20.9' high on every floor. The math just doesn't make sense. I realize the 1st - probably 4th stories are going to have higher ceilings too, but even with that taken into account the average is almost 21' per floor. Nope

[KCPowercat]

The elevation is higher there than the Crowne Plaza and P&L...but probably not that extreme

[GRID]

The rendering is just way way off. The only thing I can think of is that there will also be apartments or condos in the building in the renderings shown. Otherwise, it will look about half as tall in correct renderings if it's only 23 stories. Plus 800 rooms in two buildings will not rise 40 stories. That's not enough rooms to fill that large of a tower with that size of a foot print.

Here is a similar sized convention hotel in baltimore that also has two towers. 757 rooms, 24 stories.



Now compare that to the renderings below. Makes no sense.

If it were just the one tower, it would make sense as then it would be about the same size building as the Crown Center Sheraton, but with the other shorter tower next to the tall tower, I just can't make sense of it.

The renderings are either correct and they show a residential component that has not be released or it was back when the hotel was well over 1000 rooms.

Or the rendering is flat out incorrect. I can't imagine the people working on a 300 million dollar project would get the renderings this wrong. So there might be more to this project than hotel rooms.

[pash]

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[GRID]

I'm pretty sure the way I counted floors is correct. There might be a little architectural license in the renderings, but I think they're pretty realistic. The screen/sign on top of the building is actually the height of four floors, I think, looking at it again, so in appearance it's a 27-story building built on a three- or four-story hill—basically it will look like a 30-story building standing off by itself.

And the rendering everyone is looking at is based on a photo shot with a telephoto lens from a helicopter at about roof level. That makes things in the foreground appear large relative to the background, and the hotel is a couple of blocks nearer than all of the tall buildings behind it. So it's a bit of an optical illusion, but I imagine the rendering is actually pretty accurate.

Rather than comparing it to the tall buildings behind it, compare it to the Kauffman Center (which is only about 65 feet tall, and built on ground at the same level as the hotel will be built on) in the rendering looking north over the Crossroads.

My guess is that the hotel as proposed and rendered will be about 350 feet tall to the top of the screen on the roof. Sitting on a hill, it will be as high in the sky as a roughly 380- or 390-foot building would be if it were sitting next to the Power & Light Building. And since it's a couple of blocks south of all the other tall buildings on the skyline, it will look markedly taller when viewed from the Crossroads.

Basically I think the renderings are probably pretty realistic. It's going to stand out.

Okay, after looking at it again, I think you are right. There are several things making this building appear much taller than 23 floors. First off, it looks like it’s sitting on a massive parking structure wrapped with several public space levels of ballrooms, lobby etc so the first floor of the actual hotel doesn’t start till what would be 6-7 stories off the ground. Then you factor in the three story screen on top, the gap between the two sections of the main tower and hilltop location and you have a very tall and skyline changing 23 story building. The 800 rooms also makes sense now that see what part of the building is actually the rooms. It looks like it will approach height of the P&L Tower.

Regardless, I really like the building and am glad the city did all this behind the scenes and is ready to make it happen without discussion from the public. That’s the only way it would happen. This project is desperately needed and city incentives are justified.

[JBmidtown]

Yes

[Cheffreygo]

I agree with you, pash. I looked at a photo from Liberty Memorial and even though the Performing Arts Center is 70ish feet tall, from that southern perspective, it looks like it is about equal in height to the 16th or 17th floor of the KCP&L building, meaning that the new hotel's location alone could create an optical illusion which seems to add 9 or 10 stories. My logic might be flawed, but it could be possible that the reported floor count is right and the renderings look accurate.

[joshmv]

This also instantly changed the skyline. This is in position to block view of everything due north of it from the Liberty Memorial. That means P&L is going to be mostly hidden from that view for the first time in 90 years.

I was wondering about that as well, but after comparing a few different shots from the Liberty Memorial, it looks like it won't be much different than this...



It may cover the bottom half, but the upper half should be visible. I'm glad that it will continue to be visible from that view, especially since it will be lit up again soon.

I can't wait for this thing to get off the ground.

[pash]

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[JBmidtown]

I'm excited about the new skyline but I'm having a hard time visualizing what the view from the south would look like with the hotels, all the Light buildings, other new and speculative structures. Anybody up for the photoshop challenge?

Also, I'm a little frustrated with Kerr's comment on all development being outside the loop from here on. What about all the space in the north loop and the boom happening in the neighborhoods north of the trench? Or am I misunderstanding his statement?

[GRID]

This also instantly changed the skyline. This is in position to block view of everything due north of it from the Liberty Memorial. That means P&L is going to be mostly hidden from that view for the first time in 90 years.

I was wondering about that as well, but after comparing a few different shots from the Liberty Memorial, it looks like it won't be much different than this...



It may cover the bottom half, but the upper half should be visible. I'm glad that it will continue to be visible from that view, especially since it will be lit up again soon.

I can't wait for this thing to get off the ground.

Yea, plus you are pretty high up from the deck of the Liberty Memorial which should make the Hyatt appear shorter than the P&L building. I think it will be fine, you may just have to move to the extreme side of the deck to see the P&L building. Even if it does block the P&L Building, that's life. I have a feeling there will be a lot more new towers proposed for the area just south of 670 (and north) in the coming years.

[joshmv]

I'm excited about the new skyline but I'm having a hard time visualizing what the view from the south would look like with the hotels, all the Light buildings, other new and speculative structures. Anybody up for the photoshop challenge?

I'm working on it, but you're right, it's hard to get the perspective right when comparing all of their rendo's with real shots that I have access to. I'll see what I can do and then adjust it based on what people think.

[FangKC]

At least the funding mechanism will limit the City's subsidy. It also looks like any accommodation for the American Royal in the West Bottoms is dead, since they are taking the funding source for the new AR arena, and applying it to the convention hotel.

[joshmv]

I've looked at it a bunch of different ways, and if the renderings are close to being correct, this thing is going to look huge from the south.

I couldn't find anything from the exact angle they used, but I got as close as I could. I used their their overhead layout to gauge the space between Wyandotte and Baltimore as a guide and this is what came out...

[missingkc]

Just a rendering, I know, but the lights in tower windows in the dusk rendering support the 40ish floor interpretation instead of the 24ish interpretation. Do agree though that the shorter perpendicular tower makes this building appear too massive for 800 rooms. The Sheraton CC (c. 42 stories, I think) is around 750 rooms and is similar in size to the taller tower without the east-west piece on the northern side. Then again, the Westin gets 750 rooms into a c. 15 story L-shape similar to this rendering without the tower above the roof garden level.

[KCTOGA]

joshmv.......Very nice!!! I now have a new desktop photo. Thank you.