Under the terms of the financing, Credit Lyonnais and Bayerische Hypo-und Vereinsbank, AG (Hypo) will be co-lenders of the $150 million construction financing for the Doubletree Hotel on 42nd Street and the Embassy Suites Hotel at Battery Park City. Permanent financing of $150 million for these two hotels will be provided by Deutsche Bank, AG. An additional $32 million construction loan with a mini-permanent loan component from Credit Lyonnais and Hypo will be provided for Battery Park City's retail and entertainment components. 

Charles A. Ratner, President and Chief Executive Officer of Forest City Enterprises, Inc. said, ``We are delighted to announce the hotel construction starts and major financings in conjunction with our joint venture partner, Promus, of what we believe will be two very exciting projects for us in New York. Doubletree and Embassy Suites are outstanding operators. 42nd Street and Battery Park City are good examples of Forest City's mixed-use project approach to urban development.'' 

42nd Street Hotel, Entertainment and Retail Complex 

The new 455-room, 25-story Doubletree Hotel will be built on top of Forest City's 42nd Street entertainment and retail development now under construction that will feature the first Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in North America; a 5,000-seat, 25-screen AMC Theatre megaplex; retail outlets such as HMV Records and Just For Feet; and a wide variety of restaurants and other food and beverage outlets operated by Host Marriott Services. The 300,000-square-foot retail/entertainment component of 42nd Street, which is 93% pre-leased, is scheduled to open in 1999. 

The 304,000-square-foot hotel will feature a sky-lobby restaurant and lounge with express shuttle elevators transporting guests from the street level to the lobby and a conference center. The hotel will have street-level entrances on both 41st and 42nd Streets. 

Battery Park City Hotel, Entertainment and Retail Development 

The Embassy Suites Hotel in Battery Park City will have 463 rooms. The hotel will have a 13-story atrium featuring displays of public art and connecting the hotel with a 16-screen, 4,000-seat Regal Cinema. The retail component will include a 20,000-square-foot New York Sports Club, a 6,500-square-foot Kinko's store and approximately 30,000 square feet of additional retail and restaurant space. Guests at the Embassy Suites will enjoy a state-of-the-art business conference center, complimentary breakfast and beverages and use of the New York Sports Club facilities. 

``These two developments are testimony to the tremendous revitalization that has taken place over the past few years in Times Square and downtown Manhattan,'' said New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani. ``By investing in these neighborhoods, Forest City Ratner Companies and Promus Hotel Corporation are generating revenue and jobs for the city as well as providing tourists and business travelers with superb accommodations. This enhances 42nd Street as the 'Crossroads of the World' and it increases the attractiveness of downtown Manhattan as a prime tourist and business location.'' 

Forest City Ratner Companies is an affiliate of Cleveland-based Forest City Enterprises. Forest City Enterprises, Inc. is a $3 billion NYSE-listed real estate company headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio principally engaged in the ownership, development, acquisition and management of commercial and residential real estate throughout the United States. The company's 191 retail, residential, office and hotel properties are operated by regional offices in New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Tucson, Detroit, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco.