PBSCV1599
Gen. James Patton Anderson Camp 1599
Celebrating 34 Years 1992 - 2026
Island’s Biltmore Has Had Several Lives
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April 25, 2007 Eliot Kleinberg's Post Time columns.
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Longtime reader Roger St. Martin of suburban Lake Worth called recently to ask about the history of Palm Beach’s Biltmore Hotel.
The hotel, just north of the Flagler Memorial Bridge at 150 Bradley Place, opened in 1894 as the Palm Beach Hotel. It burned when The Breakers caught fire in March 1925. A new building was constructed in 1926 as the Spanish-themed Alba. It had been built for $5 million to $6 million, which, in 2007 dollars, is as much as $68 million. In January 1929, it was renamed the Ambassador. When the boom busted, it went into bankruptcy. In 1933, it was sold to an outfit that also owned the Biltmore in Coral Gables and was renamed the Palm Beach Biltmore.
In 1943 and 1944, the U.S. Coast Guard used it as a training base for the Spars, its women’s reserve. In 1945, it was the U.S. Navy Convalescent Hospital, with more than 700 patients. St. Martin recalls that, when he was about 11, he and others would put on boxing matches for GIs. St. Martin said he’d watch them relaxing on the sun deck, getting some rays and watching speedboat races in the Intracoastal Waterway.
In 1946, the Biltmore, then owned by the Hilton chain, returned to civilian service. The hotel closed in the 1970s and fell into disrepair, but was rescued from demolition by famed devel-oper John D. MacArthur. MacArthur sold it in 1977 for $5.3 million to investor Stanley J. Harte, who renovated it and reopened it in 1981 as the 128-unit Palm Beach Biltmore Condo-miniums.
THE ALBA - 1926 -1929
On the site of the Palm Beach Hotel, which burned in March, 1925,Maurice Heckscher built the $7 million Alba Hotel. Named for his polo-playing friend the Spanish Duke of Alba, the 12-story hotel opened in February 1926 with 550 rooms. The first party for 1,000 was hosted by Mrs. Edward T. Stotesbury, Mrs. Paris Singer, and other notable socialites. By May, the hotel was bankrupt, although it reopened the following year. By 1929, it became part of the Ambassador Hotel chain. The next owner, Colonel Henry Doherty, changed the name to the Biltmore in 1934.
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The Name:
Palm Beach Post
Sat, Sep 26, 1953
Page 3
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Duke’s Death Recalls Early Days In Resort
Word of the Duke of Alba’s death Thursday, in theCecil clinic at Lausanne, Switzerland, recalled early days in Palm Beach when the Palm Beach Biltmore, then known as the Hotel Alba, was originally named for him. Although the Duke never came to Palm Beach, his name was a familiar one in the winter colony during the late twenties. When the Hotel Alba, now the Palm Beach Biltmore, opened in February, 1926, for the first time, it bore the Duke’s name.
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A fabulous suite of rooms known as the “Duke of Alba suite,” was a feature of the boom-time hotel and was readied for the Duke’s occupancy. It was reported at that time he would attend the grand opening but long-time residents of Palm Beach recalled the Duke never came despite the fanfare which centered about his anticipated visit. Jacob Fitz-James Stuart y Falco, 17th Duke of Alba and 10th Duke of Berwick, was the most titled nobleman outside the reigning families of Europe. He was seven times a duke, fourteen times a marquis, twenty times a count, and twenty-four times a knight.
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Excerpted - of which later
The Miami Herald ,
Sun, Jun 23, 1974
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"....Two years and $7 million later, Hecksher prepared to open Palm Beach's newest and swankiest hotel, built around a courtyard with a Spanish motif. Hecksher called his dream hotel the Alba, after his Spanish polo buddy, the Duke of Alba. The Alba family crest was fixed on bellboy uniforms and hotel ads.
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For the lavish opening, the Duke was invited and a suite consisting of a series of galleries and salons, a dining hall and five sleeping rooms wre readied especially for him. Society turned out en masse, reported a social journal of the day. The Alba opening was one of the most beautiful affairs which Palm Beach has seen in years. An atmosphere of Spain filled the entire event and lent a charm which none of the fortunate guests will forget. Athough the Duke of Alba, the honored guest, was not able to attend there were some reports that an actor was hired to impersonate the Duke so that the ladies wouldn't be disappointed. The story also goes that the actor sipped too much champagne and was unmasked when makeup dripped from his face....."
THE AMBASSADOR - 1929 -1933
THE BILTMORE HOTEL - 1933 -1981
THE BILTMORE CONDOMINIUMS - 1981 - Present
The Biltmore condominium’s west elevation seen from the Lake Trail at sunset. The Biltmore first opened as the Alba Hotel in February 1926, bankrupt just four months later, it then reopened as the Ambassador Hotel, part of the Ambassador Hotel chain. Later, it was rechristened the Biltmore, changing owners numerous times, among them, the Hilton chain, H. R. Weissberg, George MacDonald and A. C. Sonnabend. The last of the town’s great lakeside hotels, the Biltmore was converted into a naval training facility during WW II. In 1980 the building was completely gutted and transformed into a 128-unit condominium.
By Augustus Mayhew
In 1979 the Shah of Iran’s overthrow sparked a mini-boom for the Beverly Hills real estate market, and thirty years later, Pari-Sima Pahlavi, fka Mrs. Doreez (Peri) Dolats, nee Pari Sima Zand, is doing what she can to keep the Palm Beach market afloat, shelling out $2.5 million for her latest apartment at the Palm Beach Biltmore, according to court papers filed December 31st. Pahlavi bought a 7th-floor, 1,800-square-foot, 3-and-3 from Deena Freeman, aka Deena Morgan, who had paid $1.45 million for the unit in 2003. While some Pahlavi royals have their Vuitton Pegase packed and ready-to-roll back to the family’s imperial marble palace in Tehran, Mrs. Pahlavi previously deeded her 3,000-square-foot Biltmore penthouse into a trust for heirs, HIHs Kamyar and Sarvenaz Pahlavi, children from her marriage to the late HIH Prince Abdul Reza Pahlavi.
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The Palm Beach Post
Thu, Jan 5, 1928
Page 5
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Alba Hotel Opens Today for Third Season, Now Managed by Ambassador Chain
The Alba, southernmost of the great chain of Ambassador Hotels, opens this morning for its third year and is its full season under the management of the S.W. Strauss interests. The huge lakefront hotel with its 75 suites and 350 rooms has been completely redecorated and remodeled in part at a cost of over $200,000.
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Some of the changes were necessitated by substitution of the American Plan of Service for the European Plan, upon which the hotel has been operated in former seasons The lobby has been enlarged and is most attractive with walls of pale sand color, rugs of mulberry tone an floors of waxed green and terracotta tile. The main dining room, opening from the lobby through a broad archway, occupies the space formerly used as the lounge and will seat 550 guests.
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Windows of clear glass replace those of leaded panes and afford a pleasant view of the unique hanging gardens of the Alba, constructed upon the roof of the western part of the ground story, which houses the Alba shops. The former ballroom in the south wing has been altered into a sun- flooded lounge whose predominating color tones of soft rose and green are repeated in walls and furnishings. Through these changes the Alba has gained additional comfort and charm without losing its distinctive individuality.
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The Grill Room will be formally opened on the night of January 21. Ben Bernie’s famous band will furnish the music at the hotel the night of the opening and for the rest of the season. Bernie in person will lead the band for several weeks and will be succeeded in the leadership by his brother, Dave, who has been leading the orchestra at one of New York’s famous supper clubs.
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The Palm Beach Post
Fri,, Feb 8, 1929
Page 9
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Injunction Hearing Postponed; Arrests Continue At Beach
Straus Suit For Order Restraining City From Interfering With Work Delayed; May Come Up For Airing This Afternoon
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While injunction proceedings designed to prevent the town of Palm Beach from interfering with construction of the S. W. Straus bathing beach for Hotel Alba guests was pending Thursday in Circuit Court, work was being halted by arrest of seven laborers on the beach site.
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Injunction proceedings were instituted Thursday before judge C. E. Chillingworth in Circuit Court, following refusal Wednesday night by the town council of a permit to allow construction of the beach arrest of seven additional laborers at work on the beach. Arrest of seven additional laborers at on the beach Thursday morning brought the number to sixteen workers and one Straus official, on charges of working without official permit. Trial has been set in Municipal court for 3 o’clock Saturday afternoon.
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Charging Mayor Barclay Warburton, members of the town council and, Chief of Police, Joseph Borman, with deliberate and unlawful conspiracy to discriminate against Mr. Straus and guests of the Hotel Alba the injunction petition cites instances of arrests of workmen engaged in leveling the sand of the beach near the end of Sunrise Avenue.
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Although Blackwell, Donnell & Moore, attorneys for Straus interests, asked for an immediate hearing when the petition was entered Thursday afternoon, Judge Chillingworth held that the defense had not received sufficient time to prepare its case and set the hearing for 2 o’clock this afternoon providing nothing now set on the docket interferes. In case the petition cannot be heard this afternoon, the hearing will be set for 11o’clock Saturday morning, the attorneys were told.
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Robbins & Drew appeared in behalf of the defense which includes, in addition to the town of Palm Beach and the two officials named, Manager L. Trevette Lockwood and Councilman H. G. Greer, James M Owens jr., H. C. Woodruff, Louis d’Esterrer and William Frenet.
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Aaccording to the petition, Straus is the owner in fee simple and with all littoral rights of several lots fronting 160 feet on the ocean, and 351 feet on Sunrise Avenue, the tract under discussion, and in addition a small piece the width of the street between the end of Sunrise Avenue and the ocean. He cites the fact that the beach for eight miles south and three miles north is used by the public for a bathing beach and that his workmen were simply attempting to level the sand, erect life lines and small portable tents on the beach.
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On February 4, the crew started work. There was no danger of jeopardizing the health or safety of any residents or visitors in Palm Beach and the work was not designed nor could it detract from, injure, disturb, or impair use of adjoining property, the petition stated.
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There was no violation of town ordinance or any other law in the work or the manner in which it was executed, the petition said. Police interfered with workmen, drove them from the beach, lodged them in jail, and threatened to arrest anyone who continued to work, the plea stated.
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Mr. Straus is owner of the majority stock of the Hotel Alba and controls the hotel and alleges that the defendants had deliberately and unlawfully conspired and confederated together to discriminate against him and guests of the Hotel Alba. The plea cites the fact that guests of the Royal Poinciana, Breakers, Royal Denali and Billows hotels are allowed to use the ocean beach for bathing without molestation.
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The Palm Beach Post
Wed, Jan 15, 1930
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AMBASSADOR OPENS TODAY WITH GREATEST SEASON IN PROSPECT
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inauguration of ocean bathing beach for guests also scheduled many notables expected for winter --
With a reservation list presaging the best year in its history, the Ambassador re-opens for the season this morning. The 600-room hotel on Lake Worth, at the foot of Sunrise Avenue, is operated by the Ambassador Hotels System, others in the chain being the Ambassador Hotels in New York, Atlantic City, and Los Angeles
The hotel is under the direction of William H. Peterkin, vice president and treasurer of the Ambassador Hotels System.
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The Infanta Gardens, located on the west side of the hotel facing Lake Worth, are more beautiful than ever this year. The past summer having been particularly fortuitous for the development of the rare plants and shrubs so that the prim footpaths are now almost buried in a wealth of tropical growth making of the whole a gigantic nosegay. in the midst of which the famed Moorish fountain,s replicas of those at the Alhambra in Spain, appear as exquisite ceramics.
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Here in the afternoon, the tea dances are held where guests will waltz or foxtrot to the strains of music provided by Harry Luventhal and his orchestra. At luncheon or dinner served in the Grand Castillian or the Queen Isabella restaurant or on the terrace, the Ambassador's concert orchestra, also under Mr. Leventhal's direction, will play. A notable addition this year, for the entertainment of the Abassador's guests, is the new Ambassador Beach at the foot of Sunset Avenue on the ocean, which is under the management of Charles P. Squarzini of the Milton Point Casino Rye New York the swimming pool one of the largest in the colony is 100 feet long,40 feet broad with a maximum depth of ten fee. The capacity is 190,000 gallons.​
A ten-foot concrete wall, tinted a mellow shade, surrounds the entire establishment, including pavilion, bathhouses, patio, terrace, and other facilities. In front of the pavilion, running the full width of the house and overlooking the ocean, a forty-foot terrace has been constructed where luncheon will be served. The steps from the terrace lead to a wide, flagged walk and thence to the boardwalk, the latter is arranged in the form of a three-sided hollow square with steps leading down to the sands from each side, giving an amphitheatre-like effect. The cabanas are located on the north.
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The Palm Beach Post
Fri, Jul 12, 1929
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AMBASSADOR PLANNED FOR CONSTRUCTION REVEALED TODAY
Addition Will Cost $200,000 For Rrooms To Be Used As Servants Quarters
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Construction of a four-story addition to the Ambassador Hotel, formerly known as the Alba, containing approximately 250 rooms to be used as a servant's quarters, will be started in the near future by a northern construction firm, according to attachés of the Office of Treaner and Futio, Palm Beach and New York architects.
The cost of the addition to the familiar Palm Beach hostelry will be in the neighborhood of $200,000. It was said. The additions will be built along the north wing of the hotel and run along the entire north facade, starting at Bradley Place and running to Lake Trail it is estimated that the four-story addition will be approximately 300 ft long and 35 ft wide.
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Changes at the properties on Sunset Avenue and North Ocean Boulevard will be made in conjunction with work on the hotel and probably will be performed by the same construction company. Work at the beach, which will include changes about the present edifice; their addition of a swimming pool and tennis courts is estimated to cost in the neighborhood of $80,000.
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Permit for contemplated changes at the beach residence purchased last winter by S. W. Straus, president of the S.W. Straus and Company and head of the Ambassador Hotel System, was granted by the Town Council of Palm Beach, May 25th, according to Judge B. Donnell, attorney for the Straus Palm Beach interests, when the town permit for alterations and changes was granted. The property is to be maintained as the personal residence of Mr. Strauss; there is no intention of maintaining any commercial venture there. We are satisfied with the granting of a permit and expect to see that plans are carried out this summer.
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Treanor and Futio have evolved plans for the above changes and additions. The contract, as announced on that date, has been awarded to George W. Langford of New York and Miami.
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The Palm Beach Post
Wed, Jul 17, 1929
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​Ambassador Hotel Beach Work Will Be Starting Soon
Plans For 200-Room Servants Wing Reported Temporarily Abandoned
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Plans for the erection of a $200,000 annex to the Ambassador Hotel (formerly the Alba) have been abandoned according to an announcement Tuesday from the office of Treanor and Fatio architects. Orders to cancel the work were received from the Ambassador Company in New York your Vegas business call now
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Abandonment of the project is only temporary and it probably will be resumed next year in the opinion of the architect. Plans had been completed for the new 250-room, four-story annex, which was to have housed the servants for the hotel.
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Although this project has been temporarily abandoned, work on the hotel bathing beach property is to begin within about 3 weeks it was announced permit for work expected to total about $80,000 on the Sunrise Avenue property was issued in May. Controversy regarding construction on this beach and improvements planned came to an end with the acceptance by the town of affidavits stating that the property would be used as the private residence of S. W. Straus head of the Ambassador Hotel System for the use of his household and guests
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The Palm Beach Post
Sun, Apr 5, 1930
Page 6
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OFFICERS NAMED FOR AMBASSADOR​
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At a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Ambassador Hotel Corporation, Vladimir Rachevsky was elected president to succeed the late Herbert S Martin. At the same session Walter Baker, a director of the corporation and for some years assistant to the president, was elected vice president. The executive committee of the corporation is composed of Mr. Rachevsky, Mr. Baker, and William H. Peterken, vice president and treasurer. The Ambassador Hotel Corporation owns and operates the Ambassador Hotels in New York, Atlantic City, Los Angeles, and Palm Beach.​
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The Palm Beach Post
DeAunm Dec 29, 1929
Page 9
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Palm Beach Hotel Opens in January
The Ambassador Hotel Palm Beach will open its 1930 season on Wednesday, January 15th, under the ownership and management of the Ambassador Hotel Corporation which also owns and operates Ambassador Hotels of New York, Atlantic City, and Los Angeles.
Ambassador Beach on the ocean, two blocks from the hotel, has been completed and will be opened early in January. Treanor and Fatio of Palm Beach were the architects for the beach improvement. They have completely transformed the palatial home which stood on the property. The wide porches, patios, and dining rooms are among the new features and are most attractive
The swimming pool is 100 feet long and 50 ft wide. There is an abundance of locker rooms, shower baths, sun decks, and solariums. There are a great many cabanas on the beach and playgrounds for children. Mr. William H Peterkin, the managing director, reports that reservations for rooms received at the New York booking offices are far in excess of last year. The hotel will be conducted on the American Plan with the Ambassador's incomparable standard of service and cuisine. There will be the usual Saturday night dances in the Salamanca grill and for dancing, in the Infanta Gardens.
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The Palm Beach Post
Tue, Jan 20, 1931
Page 7
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​Ambassador Hotel​
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​The formal opening of the Hotel Ambassador will be officially celebrated Saturday evening with a supper dance in the Muleteer Grille. Music will be by the Ambassador Hotel Orchestra under Irving Gitlin, who is well known in musical circles; He has directed the orchestra with and for Ben Bernie and opened the roof at the St. Regis Hotel for Vincent Lopez. Under the direction of Gitlin, the orchestra was well received at the Sunday evening concert making an especial appeal with Ravel's "Bolero". The orchestra specializes in Argentine and Cuban dance numbers
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Count Philipp von Luckner the famous sea devil is now en route to Palm Beach aboard his yacht the Mobilia and is expected to spend some time at the Ambassador Hotel as a result of a recent automobile accident he was compelled to cancel a series of lectures and is taking advantage of the opportunity to take a rest in Florida the Mobilia will probably be left in Miami and Count and Countess von Luckner will then spend some time in Palm Beach
Gar Wood of Detroit, whose name is synonymous with speedboat racing the world over, and his wife were among the Sunday arrivals, as were Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Keasler, Philadelphia; Mr. and Mrs. H. F. Rising of Lakewood, Ohio
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The Palm Beach Post
Feb, 11, 1932
​Page 4
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Ambassador Firm Asks For Clear Title
Bill to Settle rRght to Trust is filed by Hotel Corporation
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With title to the Ambassador Hotel property involved in an unsettled trust agreement, the Ambassador Hotel Corporation Wednesday filed suit to clear the title. The suit was directed against Hattie K. Straus, of Paris widow of S. W. Straus; Madeleine S Martin, New York; Louise S. Celestine, Paris; Harriet S Reshevsky and her husband, Vladimir Reshevsky, Paris, both of New York. They are ordered to appear by March 21othe bill of complaint will be considered to be confessed.
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The of complaint asserts that S. W. Straus before June 7, 1929, purchased the property used by the present Ambassador Hotel, not with his own money but for S. W. Strauss and Company with its money. The land was held in trust for the corporation by a declaration he drew up June 7, 1929, in which he declared that he had no beneficial interest in the land, says the suit.
The Straus Corporation December 31, 1929, transferred all its right and title in the property to the Ambassador Hotel Corporation, but Mr. Straus died without changing the trust and the record title to the land is now in the hands of the defendants, heirs to Mr. Straus, the bill sets forth.
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The suit asks the court to take jurisdiction and to decree that the property was held in trust by Mr. Straus for the corporation and that title should be assigned to the Ambassador Hotel Corporation and a deed executed.
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The Palm Beach Post
Fri, May 13, 1932
Page 7
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Ambassador Beach Property Transferred
Heirs of the late Simon W. Straus, president of S. W. Straus & Company, were ordered in circuit court on Thursday to turn over to the receivers of the Ambassador Hotel title to the hotel beach property. The receivers are Irving Trust Company and Frank W. Kridel of New York. Twenty days was set as the time for transferring the title.
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The heirs include Hattie D. Straus, widow; Madeline S. Martin; Mr. and Mrs. Vladimir Kachevsky; and Louise S. Celestin. Joe H. Lesser was named trustee for the purpose of making the transfer.
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The property was purchased from J. Leonard Replogie as a beach for the Ambassador Hotel. This last season, when the Ambassador Hotel was not operated, the beach was run as the Colony-Ambassador beach under lease to Arthur Hand.
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The Palm Beach Post
Fri, Jan 12, 1934
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FIRST MORTGAGE BONDS OF AMBASSADOR HOTEL ARE SOLD IN NEW YORK
INVESTMENT BROKERS, PRESUMABLY REPRESENTING dOHERTY, MAKE PURCHASE​
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Officials of the New York real estate bondholders protective Committee said Thursday that most of the outstanding first mortgage bonds of the Ambassador Hotel at Palm Beach, formerly known as the Alba Hotel, has been sold to Robert E. Graham and Company, Fifth Avenue Investment Brokers. The information was contained in an Associated Press dispatch from New York. The Graham firm presumably represented Colonel Henry L. Doherty, previously announced as purchaser of the hotel, although dispatches did not say so.
"The purchaser, pending a study of the situation, declared Thursday to say what steps are planned as a result of the purchase," the dispatch continued. "The officials of the protective committee, described as having represented holders of almost 94 percent of the bonds, which have been in default for some time, said that last October a notice was sent to bondholders advising them of an offer by the Graham firm to buy deposited bonds.
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"This offer, the officials said, "was approved by the bondholders, and by Samuel Seabury, acting as arbiter for the committee and the sale was consummated last Thursday. The total purchase price was described as roughly $270,000."
The Alba Hotel was constructed during the boom years and cost nearly $9,000,00 to build and furnish; it was placed in bankruptcy in the spring of 1926, about six weeks after opening in February, 1926, for the first time
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During the spring, the bankruptcy litigation was opened and the property sold to a representative of Straus & Company for $2,000, subject to the outstanding first mortgage bond amounting to around $4,250,000, which had been underwritten by the Straus Company for the construction of the hotel. The sale was consummated during the summer of 1927. During the winter of 1927, the hotel was operated by J. Warren Smith and George W. Langford, the contractor was who constructed the hotel, and A. Melrose Lamar, trustee in bankruptcy.
The bond issue never has been foreclosed and will have to be to clear up title to a property, attorneys said here Thursday.
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The Pittsburgh Press
Sun, DecMar 12, 1937
Page 63
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PALM BEACH BILTMORE OPENING ANNOUNCED
Famous Hotel Offers 3-Point Vacation Plan With Club Privileges
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Got to get this get your hair and big news from the Florida resort front this week is the announcement of the opening in January of the Palm Beach Biltmore Hotel with a 3 point American Plan complete vacation policy which includes accommodations meals transportation by private auto car to the resort entrance of the area and membership privileges in two exclusive Palm Beach clubs for golf and surf begging the Palm Beach Biltmore is under the same ownership and direction as the British Colonial Hotel Nassau, Bahamas.
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​Moderate American Plan Rates
One of Florida's largest resort hotels, the Palm Beach Biltmore, stands on the Palm Beach shore of beautiful Lake Worth beside the Lake Trail, a 7-mile pedestrian highway first point of the 3-point vacation plan is the hotel itself its fine accommodations, service, and cuisine, and the facilities and entertainment provided within the hotel and its Infanta Gardens.
Unique Club Privileges
Palm Beach Biltmore guests will be accorded privileges upon committee approval of the Sun and Surf Club on the ocean and of the Palm Beach Country Club, which has the finest golf course on the island. At Sun and Surf, our splendid beach and pool clubhouse with a limited number of oceanfront guest rooms, in addition to golf and a spacious clubhouse, the CountryCclub has dockage facilities for yachts in sheltered lake Worth.
Courtesy Transportation
From the hotel, the Palm Beach Biltmore Autocar fleet leads guests to the clubs and to the many interests of the area. This cost-free transportation is both a convenience and an economy thus the American Plan rates practically cover all the expenses of the complete Palm Beach Vacation ...1 --accommodations and meals ...2-- club privileges ...3-- transportation. Alll are included.
For rates information and reservations, communicate with the hotel at Palm Beach, with the New York office at 551 Fifth Avenue, (telephone MUrray Hill 2-O521) or the Chicago office at 120 Scotch LaSalle Street( (telephoneFRAnklin 4645).
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The Palm Beach Post
Mon, Mar 4, 1957
Page 19
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Ambassador Hotel And Villas Sold
Lawrence A. Wies, New York real estate investor, announced Saturday he has signed a contract to buy the Palm Beach Ambassador Hotel and Villas in Palm Beach.
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The present owner, the Cleveland Shaker Apartment Co. of Palm Beach, will relinquish title to the property about May 1, Wies said. Wies said the sale was for all cash over mortgages totaling approximately $2,000,000. The hotel proper is a seven-story structure with 62 suites containing approximately 200 rooms. The Villas contain an additional 32 units with approximately 60 rooms. A swimming pool and 340 feet of ocean frontage are included.
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Wies said the hotel will be air-conditioned and remodeled.
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The Palm Beach Post
Tue, Oct 13, 1959
Page 0
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Biltmore Hotel In Palm Beach Sold For $3,500,000
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New York, Oct. 12. (AP) -- Hotel Corporation of America today announced purchase of the 537-room Biltmore Hotel in Palm Beach, Florida, from the West India Fruit and Steamship Co. The price was reported to be $3.5 million.
John J. Bergen, chairman. and A. Sonnabend, president, said the recently renovated hotel will be open from late November to mid-May. It has 55 suites, a private yacht basin, terraces, dining and dancing, a swimming pool, and private beach. Bergen said the luxury hotel will continue under operation of James J Farrell as general manager.
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The Miami Herald ,
Sun, Jun 23, 1974
Page 7
By Georgia Pabst
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Biltmore Never Quit Attained Vision of Rich Magnificence
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From across Lake Worth, the twin towers of the Biltmore Hotel still look imposing and elegant, befitting the Palm Beach landmark it has become.
But like a rapidly aging movie queen, when viewed up close, the grandeur of the once gleaming white towers fades; the paint and plaster are peeling, and the wrought iron is coated with rust. The once carefully manicured landscape has become tangled and overgrown; palm fronds lay in the drives carelessly strewn in the wind.
Pigeons now rest in the towers which used to glow brightly under floodlights as a yearly sign to all that " The Season"l has arrived. Since 1970, the lights of the towers have been dimmed and the door to the 540-room, 10-story hotel locked and although the $5 million sale of the hotel was announced last year with grand schemes for remodeling and restoration, the plan has run into legal snags and the future of the hotel is again uncertain.
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In its 48 years, the Biltmore has changed its name three times, and under a parade of owners, it has had a history of financial ups and downs. And even that first opening season would somehow portend what lay ahead. The Biltmore began to take shape in 1924 when Maurice Hecksher drew a rough outline of the dream Hotel he hoped to build in Palm Beach on a tablecloth of a New York restaurant, according to the archives of the Palm Beach Historical Society.
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Two years and $7 million later, Hecksher prepared to open Palm Beach's newest and swankiest hotel, built around a courtyard with a Spanish motif. Hecksher called his dream hotel the Alba, after his Spanish polo buddy, the Duke of Alba. The Alba family crest was fixed on bellboy uniforms and hotel ads.
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For the lavish opening, the Duke was invited and a suite consisting of a series of galleries and salons, a dining hall and five sleeping rooms wre readied especially for him. Society turned out en masse reported a social journal of the day. The Alba opening was one of the most beautiful affairs which Palm Beach has seen in years. An atmosphere of Spain filled the entire event and lent a charm which none of the fortunate guests will forget. Athough the Duke of Alba, the honored guest, was not able to attend there were some reports that an actor was hired to impersonate the Duke so that the ladies wouldn't be disappointed. The story also goes that the actor sipped too much champagne and was unmasked when makeup dripped from his face.
Six weeks after the gala opening, the hotel was placed in bankruptcy and in the spring of 1926, it was sold to Straus and Company. For the 1927 opening season, the hotel got a new name -- The Ambassador, and although the prospects for success seemed promising, the depression soon brought trouble. The hotel again changed hands and became the Biltmore, it never missed opening for the social season, even throughout the depression years.
With the coming on of World War II, the hotel closed its doors to society and first became a Coast Guard training base for the Women's Auxiliary Unit and next, a US Navy convalescent hospital for 1,400 patients.
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After the armistice, Hilton Hotels acquired the Biltmore and spent $1 million refurbishing it. The decor was changed from Spanish to a tropical theme featuring a walled-in aquarium and the use of white lime and yellow colors throughout. Again, in 1950, the hotel got a new owner, Daniel. E. Taylor, head of West India Fruit and Steamship Company and president of the Palm Beach Biltmore Hotel Company, again, the hotel was refurbished to the tune of $1 million, and the improvements were hailed.
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"The Palm Beach Biltmore, a scintillating star in the galaxy of luxury hotels in Florida, is receiving acclaim at home and abroad for its new magnificence," said one Palm Beach Society magazine, but the acclaim did not bring success.
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The hotel continued to change hands, and Taylor sold the hotel to the Hotel Corporation of America and then to the H. R. Weisberg Corporation. Financial and legal troubles continued to plague the property, which in 1967 ended back in the hands of Hotel Corporation after a mortgage foreclosure
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At this point the new management considered whether to cater to the "upper crust" clientele or become a more popular "popular priced resort" and whether it would be profitable to promote the hotel as a convention center, but three short years later, the once fabulous Biltmore Hotel, which had numbered among its guests Rube Goldberg, Babe Ruth, General Douglas MacArthur, Mary Pickford, and a list of social lions closed its doors because of financial problems.
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The twin-towered hotel, once planned as a glittering star of the Palm Beach social scene, was sold at public auction on the courthouse steps for $1.5,000,00 to satisfy two defaulted mortgages. The Teamsters Union Pension Fund, which made a successful bid, in turn sold the hotel to one of its former guests, multimillionaire developer and insurance man John D. MacArthur, the owner of the Colonnades Hotel in Palm Beach Shores. When MacArthur tried to reopen the hotel, the town of Palm Beach withheld the hotel's occupational license because of electrical, plumbing, and structural faults in the building.
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Last year MacArthur announced the sale of the Biltmore and with a bottle of champagne, toasted to $5 million sale to Charles Barton, an Atlanta developer. Part of the deal, MacArthur said, was that Barton had agreed to spend $7.5,000,002 to restore the hotel to its original elegance and grandeur, but now MacArthur says legal technicalities have held up the sale. The new lease on life for the Biltmore is once again up in the air. Along with The Breakers and the Colony, the Biltmore was for many a season considered one of the plushest resorts in Palm Beach and although its rooms are vacant and the light of its twin towers dimmed, the Biltmore remains a landmark and a reminder of a graceful age.​
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The Orlando Sentinal
Tue, Apr 11, 1978
Page 87
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New Condo Attracts Buyers
Palm Beach (UPI) -- The developer says he has not completed the demolition phase of converting Palm Beach's historic Biltmore Hotel into a luxury condominium, but he's already sold more than 50 of the 128 apartments to be available.
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However, developer Stanley J. Harte said he hadn't yet sold the top-of-the-line suite, formerly known as the hotel's Duke of Alba Suite and to be called the John Dee MacArthur suite in the refurbished Biltmore.
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The MacArthur suite carries a $750,000 price tag, Harte said he has received "inquiries" but hasn't yet found a buyer. What do you get for $750,000? Some 6,000 square feet of apartment spread across the building's first and second levels with a private elevator, six bedrooms each with a bath, naturally, two powder rooms, and a private terrace.
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The cheaper accommodations in the Biltmore Condominiums carry a $105,000 price tag for that, the buyer gets 1 bedroom, 1.5 baths and just shy of 1300 square feet of living space
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A more average price apartment, 265,000, at the Biltmore has a living room, 2 bedrooms, a den, 3 baths, a kitchen, a dining room, and a utility room, said spokesman Tom Fijgel.
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All residents will have the use of a Biltmore swimming pool, its tennis courts, game rooms, putting green, formal gardens, solarium, saunas, two piers, a marina on Lake Worth, and a beach club on the ocean and if they want to do things right, they can buy a private cabana along the swimming pool for just $25,000 extra.
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Harte bought the Biltmore last year from the late insurance real estate billionaire John MacArthur for whom his suite is named. Harte paid $5.34 million.
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MacArthur had bought the Biltmore from the Teamsters Union pension fund a year or so after the hotel's 1969 closing for 1.5 million. The 550-room Biltmore was completed in February 1926 as the Alba Hotel named for Spain's Duke of Alba. The suite was named for the Duke who was expected to be on hand for the opening instead he sent as his representative the U.S. Ambassador to Spain.
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Three years later, the name of the hotel was changed to the Ambassador, and in 1933, it became the Biltmore. It stood alongside the railroad bridge constructed by Henry Flagler to bring his Florida East Coast Railroad trains to his Royal Poinciana Hotel at Palm Beach. The Biltmore remained a playground for America's rich for half a century until the Non-air-conditioned Hotel fell prey to Florida's summer climate.
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