New York: Proposal to Demolish Historic Roosevelt Hotel — What’s the New Plan?
Washington ( Web News)
Pakistan is considering several options for the Roosevelt Hotel property in New York City, including demolishing the historic structure to construct a new building.
Muhammad Ali, the Prime Minister’s Advisor on Privatization, told Bloomberg that one option under discussion is to tear down the historic building and build a skyscraper in its place. He further said the government is seeking a joint venture in which Pakistan would provide the land, while the partner would bring in investment capital.
Named after former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, this century-old hotel is located in Midtown Manhattan and is considered one of Pakistan’s most valuable foreign assets. Pakistan acquired it in 2000. Due to mounting financial losses, the hotel — with more than a thousand rooms — was closed in 2020 and was later used temporarily to house refugees.
Under the $7 billion IMF loan agreement, the government approved in July the transaction structure for the Roosevelt Hotel, declaring that it would not sell the property outright but instead pursue a joint investment model to increase its long-term value.
Advisor Muhammad Ali told Bloomberg that one option is to demolish the historic structure and build a skyscraper, while another is to keep the hotel if doing so proves economically viable. He said that clarity is expected in the coming months once the joint venture partner is finalized and the market assessment completed.
According to Bloomberg, the federal government is reorganizing or privatizing state-owned enterprises to meet the terms of the IMF’s $7 billion loan program. The report said that the first asset likely to be sold is Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), which has long relied on periodic government bailouts but can no longer be sustained by the state.
Muhammad Ali stated that groups interested in buying PIA are among the country’s largest business entities and have the capacity to operate it efficiently. He estimated that approximately $500 million would be required to make the airline profitable again.
Bloomberg also reported that Pakistan is in the process of appointing a financial advisor for the Roosevelt Hotel transaction — a property some call the “new Ellis Island” due to its historical association as a gateway for immigrants.
According to the report, after receiving bids from seven groups, the government plans to appoint the new financial advisor by the end of this month. The bidding groups include Citigroup Inc., CBRE Group Inc., and Savills PLC.
The report added that PIA recorded a pre-tax profit in the first half of 2025 — the first time in nearly two decades — and that this improvement is viewed as a positive signal ahead of the airline’s planned privatization later this year.