Implosion brings down iconic Mahwah Sheraton hotel

💥The Sheraton Crossroads Hotel opened in Mahwah in 1986

💥It hosted countless proms, dances, wedding receptions and a tennis tournament

💥The hotel closed in 2023

MAHWAH — A piece of the 80s came crashing to the ground in a cloud of smoke Saturday morning.

The Sheraton Crossroads Hotel in Mahwah, was the place to go at the top of the state after its opening in 1986 for dancing comparable to Studio 54 and dining. Like many hotels it was hard hit by pandemic restrictions limiting the size of gatherings and closed in December 2023.

In its heyday the 225 room hotel hosted a tennis tournament in the parking lot, concerts plus many proms, dances and wedding receptions.

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30 seconds

It was built on the site of another piece of Mahwah history, the Ford Mahwah Assembly Plant which built 6 million cars between its opening in 1955 and closing in 1980.

Originally scheduled for April 27, it took 30 seconds for the implosion to bring down the 22-story glass hotel located near Routes 17 and 287 around 7:40 a.m., according to Rockland News. The roads around the hotel were closed around 7 a.m. for the event. State Police troopers patrolled for people parked along the highway hoping to watch.

Afterward, water cannons were sprayed on the debris to limit the amount of dust, township engineer Township Engineer Michael Kelly said at a township council meeting announcing the implosion plan.

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Mahwah on the map as the crossroads

Kelly told NorthJersey.com the building was tested for asbestos and other hazardous material before being gutted prior to the implosion.

The council has approved a plan to expand the maximum building square footage on  140 acre site from 1.7 million acres to 4 million square feet. Crossroads Hotel Developers LLC, the owners of the property, has not presented a plan.

Former Mayor Bill Laforet on his Facebook page described the hotel as the dream of developer James D'Agastino which "put Mahwah on the map as the crossroads."

"Times change and progress prevails. This landmark will hopefully be replaced by some thoughtful development in Mahwah which will make our community proud," Laforet wrote.

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