Hotel-condo debate hinges on zoning

From the February issue: For now, hotel-condos are not permitted in manufacturing zones in Manhattan, where only traditional hotels may rise and residential projects are not allowed. But while the city’s manufacturing base is shrinking, tourists visiting New York City generate billions of dollars a year. Because many of these visitors have a hard time finding a place to stay given the city’s high hotel occupancy levels, insiders say a look at land-use policies is long overdue. The Trump Organization has stepped to the front line of a pitched battle with the first hotel-condo planned for an area zoned for manufacturing, a 45-story tower at 246 Spring Street. more By Vanessa Londono