Montreal to get Waldorf=Astoria clone

MONTREAL, June 26 (UPI) -- Monit Investments of Montreal, Quebec, announced a $200 million plan to build a 32-story Waldorf=Astoria Hotel in the Canadian city.

The building will have twin art deco towers in line with its New York namesake's, complete with the equal sign instead of a hyphen in the name that came about in 1897 when the Waldorf and Astoria hotels on Park Avenue, were joined by tunnels, The Gazette newspaper in Montreal reported.

The site is now a parking lot, created when fire destroyed three 19th-century row houses in 2003, the newspaper said.

The facility will have 250 hotel rooms, 76 residences, several restaurants, bars, a spa and fitness center, Monit officials said.

Waldorf=Astoria spokesman David Semanoff told the newspaper by telephone from New York the company will manage the Montreal property to ensure the brand's standards are maintained.

The project is expected to be completed in 2011, the report said.