Extended Stay Coming To Old Empire Hotel Site In Secaucus

SECAUCUS, NJ — The abandoned location of the Empire Hotel in Secaucus is currently under contract to become an Extended Stay America, according to Secaucus Mayor Mike Gonnelli.

Extended Stay hotels is in negotiations with the Meadowlands Commission, which has to approve any new major development along the environmentally sensitive Hackensack River and in the Meadowlands wetlands.

However, Gonnelli said the Meadowlands Commission is likely to grant approval. The town of Secaucus would then likely follow with its own approval. An opening date has not been determined.

It remains unclear what will happen with the existing Extended Stay that is already in operation right down Meadowlands Parkway.

What the town of Secaucus did not want — and actively fought — was an attempt by the property owner a few years ago to convert the Empire hotel into luxury condos and micro apartments.

Mayor Gonnelli said the town rejected that idea because it would add to the density of Secaucus, which has already seen a population boom and apartment boom in the past ten years.

Gonnelli said the town has no problem if a second Extended Stay hotel opens; the hotel offers affordable long-term lodging for business travelers, families and members of the military deployed on long-term assignments.

Secaucus is a popular location for hotels — not only for its proximity to New York City, but now because it is extremely close to the American Dream mega-mall, aquarium, Ferris wheel and water park.

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