MORE THAN BEDBUGS AT TIMES SQUARE WESTIN

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BAD NEIGHBORS MAKE BAD HOTEL
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Bad Neighbors The Westin Hotel New York



I had had it with the Westin New York Hotel, which is right across the street where I live. This company, this hotel could care less about 652 residents living right across the street. They break every law in our neighborhood and no one will do anything.




WESTIN NEW YORK COULD CARE LESS ABOUT NEIGHBORS




First of all this is how their hotel operates. All the doorman out front want to make every dollar in tips they can. They will only let taxis who tip them park in from of the hotel. If you don't tip, they send you away. They have endless taxis out front with their off-duty lights on, when in fact they are not off duty. The taxis do not want any fare except airport fares which make them good money. The only way you can get a airport fare from the doorman at the Westin is to bribe them. I have seen this many times. This not only is not right, it is illegal. All the tenants in this building have seen this.



You may ask why this bothers the tenants who live here? The reason is, the taxis and limos are double parked and triple parked and traffic can not get down the street. Everyone is beeping horns and when fire trucks attempt to get down the street, they can not. The actions of the Westin Hotel Times Square are a danger to the residents who live here and a danger to everyone in the neighborhood as the fire trucks and ambulances are stuck in traffic caused by the Westin.



The greedy doorman who work at the Westin New York could care less about anyone that lives here, it's all about making tips from the customers and the taxi drivers. They break every law and the police department refuses to do anything. I can only assume that since I see endless amounts of Police in and out of the back door of the Westin, that they are feeding them for free and giving them other perks. This is also against the law.



In front of my building is No Parking Anytime. This is the law. The Westin New York will tell their tour buses that they can not park in front of their building, because they want the tips from the taxi drivers and customers. They send them in front of ours where there is no parking anytime. We have very old tenants here and almost several times a day we need ambulances for emergencies. With these buses here ambulances can't get access to our front door. The handicapped vans that come to pick up our disabled tenants must park down the block and our disabled tenants must try to make their way in their walkers and wheelchairs. This is horrible. If you say something to the Westin doorman, they laugh at you and say "call a cop". They can do this, as they know the cops will do nothing. This is very sad, as the residents of this neighborhood deserve better treatment.



I dealt with the old manager of the Westin New York John Sweeney. He was always nice on the phone, but he always made promises and never kept them. We are being tortured with the daily activities of The Westin New York. Over the years since I lived here, I have had private meetings with members of our community board. I have met with our buildings landlord many times on these issues, I am always told by everyone, they will speak to the Westin and then nothing ever happens. I can only assume that since nothing is ever done, they are all close friends. They all belong to the same Times Square Alliance, they all attend the same meetings together, so they must all be in ca-hoots together to do whatever they want.


WHAT HAPPENED TODAY



Atlantic Travel And Tours Illegally Parked



The Ugly Law Breaker Busdriver US Bus Rentals



Today I am trying to cross the street, after food shopping. I had to maneuver around illegally parked buses in front of my building, that were waiting for customers from The Westin New York. One bus company was Custom Coach And Limoways, also known as www.usbusrentals.com. Our building security guards asked this woman driver to move. He explained that there was no parking and our entrance could not be blocked as we have many old and disabled people living here and we can not have our entrance blocked for emergencies. This moron driver refused to move. I speak to her and I explain to her that the sign in front of her says 'No Parking Anytime', and she can not park here. She refuses to move.


Another company Atlantic Travel And Tours, also had their bus illegally parked. They refused to move. I called Atlantic Travel And Tours and spoke to a woman. She was rude, but said she would radio the driver. Their bus still does not move, so I call this lady back at the company. She yelled at me, and acted like it was ok for her company to break the law.

I want all my readers to e-mail these companies and to call them and tell them that you read on Times Square Gossip that they break laws and they suck, because they do.

For usbusrentals.com call 1-866-952-8737 or e mail them Info@usbusrentals.com.

For Atlantic Travel And Tours, call them at 917-754-0531 or e mail them at IW_TOURS56@yahoo.com.



THE USELESS 14th PRECINCT



The police department, the 14th precinct to be exact, is useless. Considering the crowd I hang out with and the parties I go to, I could easily pull Police Commissioner Ray Kelly aside at one of these events and tell him what I think of the 14th Precinct. The only thing is there are so many problems with the 14th, that I would not know where to begin. The police in our neighborhood refuse to enforce the law. Our building called the police for these buses, no one showed. I called twice, and the woman on the desk was rude and said she would send a patrol car. She did not. I called again, she got even ruder. She said " what did I expect them to do", I said " I expected them to do their job and send a patrol car and ticket these buses. I told her, the buses were parked and idling in front of our building illegally. I explained that the fumes go into all the tenants apartments and that it was also against the law and signs on the street say that there is a $2000.00 fine for idling and tons of signs that say No Parking Anytime. She then yells that she will hang up on me and that someone was on the way. No one ever showed.


So the bus driver from the company that breaks laws, usbusrentals.com, is in heaven. I flag down a cop on a horse, I explain everything to him. He says that they are only waiting for a tour group from The Westin. I explain that they have been sitting here for over a hour, sending fumes into all our apartments and that they need to enforce the law and have them move or ticket them. This cop says, "Go into the lobby and I'll talk to her and come in and talk to you". Minutes later, I look outside, the woman bus driver is laughing and the cop is gone. I look at her and say, I would not do this in front of your house. She say's, "yes you would". Meanwhile the cop did not do his job for which he is paid for.


I'm standing there, waiting for the police with our building security guard. They never arrive. I flag down a police cruiser. Once again I explain to these two cops the situation. They are breaking the law, please do something. They say go into the lobby and they will come talk to me in a minute. I wait, look outside the window, the ugly woman bus driver is laughing once again and the cops are no where to be found. The tour group arrives and she starts telling to pay no attention to me, I am just one of the nuts that live in this building. I take this ugly bus drivers picture, which she did not like, and she moves into the bus. Once again, the police did not do their job. No concern for 652 people that live in our building. Very sad. My readers can also call the 14th on their direct line to tell them that you read on Times Square Gossip, that they will not do their job. Their number is 1-212-239-9811. You can tie up their lines, they do nothing anyway. And I will mention this to Ray Kelly and all the other top cops I know. I wonder how these same cops would feel if buses were parked in front of their home, with fumes running into their house.



BED BUG COMPLAINTS AT THE WESTIN TIMES SQUARE



Since there have been many apartments in our building with bed bugs, I now know where they most likely came from. The Westin New York. Since we live here and we are not travelers, I can only assume after reading many complaints from Westin New York customers on travel websites, that all the travelers to the Westin Times Square have brought bed bugs into our neighborhood. In fact, I am shocked at all the complaints on these sites on the bed bugs at the Westin New York. Even more shocking, was the treatment the customers got when they complained about bed bugs to Westin management. You can read some of the stories on bed bud registry HERE. You can read bed bug comments on Trip Advisor HERE. We can only assume that the Westin New York is trying to cover up these stories, as Westin management is asking on these sites for the writers of the bed bug reviews to contact some manager named Wolfgang Wehen. We are sure there will be some kind of reward for removing their bed bug reviews.




NIGHTLIFE AT THE WESTIN HOTEL NEW YORK



Nights for the tenants of the building are nightmares. Just minutes ago, I walked outside for a smoke. They have the Westin employees washing the sidewalk with a loud power washer. Imagine that. 1am and they do not care if they wake up 652 people with this loud machine. The garbage trucks roll this time of night at The Westin. Their carting company drives down the street, beeps the horn at 2 am for the Westin to open the garage and they drop a huge empty empty garbage container in front of our building. Pounding, slamming, engines running. Then they back into the Westin with their backup horns blasting and then Pounding, slamming while the truck picks up this garbage monstrosity. They pull out of the garage, drop the fully loaded garbage container in front of our building. Pounding, slamming once again. Then they pick up the empty one, engines roaring, pounding and more slamming. They once again back into the Westin garage and the noise continues. Then they pull out, hook up the fully loaded container, roaring engines, pounding, slamming. This is what happens every night. The Westin could care less. These are the kind of neighbors the Westin Hotel New York are. My readers can also e-mail the Westin and tell them you read they are bad neighbors on Times Square Gossip. Tell them they suck. E-mail them at wolfgang.wehen@westin.com. Call them and tell them you will never stay there. There number is (866) 837-4183.

Why anyone would want to stay at the Westin, is beyond me. It is right on 8th avenue, where all the dangerous drug dealers are. There is prostitution, peepshows and it is not a safe area. Go stay somewhere else!

Photos By: James Edstrom



Comments

Anonymous said…
Thanks for this story. Was going to book a trip at the Westin for a week for Easter with my family, now I will stay somewhere else. So sorry to hear how bad they really are. Can you recommend another hotel in the area?

Joel
Jacquie Plum said…
This is a great heads up. I am in charge for booking my companies meetings in May, and we were considering the Westin in Times Square. Not a huge deal, but we would have booked 10 to 15 rooms for 4 days. I am not a huge fan of bed bugs (who is?) but being from Chicago, I understand the importance of businesses working with the community. This would almost never happen in our town, businesses and in general Hotels,respect their neighbors. They understand that everyone has to work together to make the neighborhood a happy place for visitors. As an avid reader of Times Square Gossip, I thank you for the heads up. I also, like the last commenter, would love to know what hotel do you think is good for a group of 10 to 15? Any ideas? We have a nice budget, but the important thing is to make sure my boss and co-workers are happy. Once again, thanks James for your story.

Jacquie
James Edstrom said…
Thanks for the comments on the Westin Hotel my friends. E mail me at TheBestGossip@aol.com, and I will give you a few hotels that are very nice. We can also get you a nice discount at several places we work with.


James Edstrom
Jason Anderson said…
Wow James, thought Times Square was a fun place to live. Was also considering the Westin Hotel for a stay this summer, now I will book somewhere else. Hope things get better on your block, but it seems it's all about money with the Westin and not about being good neighbors. Keep your chin up!

Jason Anderson
Anonymous said…
I too will cancel my reservation for next month. Remember James, money talks, bulls**t walks....lol
Seth said…
Hey James,

You know everyone in the media, throw a press conference in front of the Westin. If anyone can teach them to be good neighbors, you can.

Seth-New Jersey
Anonymous said…
drug dealers? so much for a safe new york city. top hotel on a drug infested street. lol
Susan said…
So sorry the Westin pissed you off so bad, that you had to write about it. Being that I stay there often for business, I will look for another hotel for my next trip. Any ideas?
Greg Goyer said…
Just found your site searching for the Westin. Sorry about your problems, but I love your site, not so much for the stories, but the photos are great. I will become a reg reader and I won't stay at the Westin.
Anonymous said…
Major downer. Will never stay there again.
Anonymous said…
I've stayed at the Westin NY at Times Square and found it to be a fantastic hotel. I saw taxis sitting outside just as i see in every hotel in Manhattan. As far as the doormen, they are very friendly, helpfull and do what they can to help guests. What i did notice was a group of men who seemed to just be a bunch of drunks talking and loitering outside of the exact building that you claim to live in. I understand that it is Times Square and after some engaging dialogue from the the Westin doormen, the view across the street is forgotten. I stay in NY several times a month and wouldn't stay anywhere else...
James Edstrom said…
I do understand your point, including my former building The Times Square Hotel run by Common Ground. It has become a drug den and this is why I moved. But the story was more about the Westin's attitude about breaking the laws. The doorman take bribes from taxis, they stack them up and traffic can not get down the street, and all the people that live in the neighborhood have to listen to horns blasting because thw Westin breaks the laws. They power wash their sidewalks in the middle of the night and the neighbors have to hear this machine running. When they complain, they always get that something will be done and it never is. The doorman are nasty. Several times when I had complained about the taxis or cars that they had stacked up to the doorman, they got nasty. They believe they own the street, not the people that live there. It's all about taking bribes from the taxis for airport fares. Does this happen at other hotels? The answer is yes. I have seen it. The point being is that there are laws to protect the people in the neighborhood and the Westin could care less. The Westin rarely will let a bus park in front of their building, because they want the bribes from taxis. Even know the bus is there for Westin customers. The doorman send them to park in front of the Times square hotel, where there is no parking ever. The buses run their AC's and idol and the smoke goes into all the apartments. When the buses are asked to move to the Westin, because thats who they are serving, they say the doorman will not let them. As much as I hate the way the Times Square Hotel has ended up as a drug den, when it used to be such a nice place, The tenants should not have to suffer from the Westin's continued attitude of breaking the laws of the street. There are good people in the Times Square Hotel that are just trying to live a nice life in peace. Almost every day and night is a nightmare. When I lived there, I spoke to several managers, they seem to change managers alot. They all yes me to death and they all tell me they want to be good neighbors, but it is always back to the same thing. The Westin makes their money off the backs of the people in the neighborhood. Business should not out weigh the community. As for drunks out side the Times Square Hotel, yes they have been there, but there are also drunks staying at the Westin that seem to think they can yell and scream at all hours of the night, litter everywhere and ruin the quality of life. At least the Westin is soundproofed. The Times Square Hotel is not. There are also better places to stay. 8th avenue is drug dealers, prostitution, beggers, peep shows and everything else. Everything is a con game on 8th avenue. As for the bed bug story, this is what people are saying on travel sites. Now you may love your stay at The Westin, but would you like them to be your neighbor?


James Edstrom