characterized as "the most complete in existence". In addition, the hotel contained a steam plant that was powered by filtered water. Each of the guestroom stories also had a small kitchen for room service, and several of the larger apartments had their own kitchens. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote that some of the Biltmore's mechanical features "threaten the extinction of the bellboy". History In the 19th century, New York Central Railroad lines north of Grand Central Depot in Midtown Manhattan were served exclusively by steam locomotives, and the rising traffic soon caused accumulations of smoke and soot in the Park Avenue Tunnel, the only approach to the depot. After a fatal crash in 1902, the New York state legislature passed a law to ban all steam trains in Manhattan by 1908. The New York Central's vice president William J. Wilgus proposed electrifying the line and building a new electric-train terminal underground, a plan that was implemented almost in its entirety. The old Grand Central Depot was torn down in phases and replaced by the current Grand Central Terminal. Construction on Grand Central Terminal started in 1903, and the new terminal was opened on February 2, 1913. Passenger traffic on the commuter lines into Grand Central more than doubled in the years following the terminal's completion. The terminal spurred development in the surrounding area, particularly in Terminal City, a commercial and office district created above where the tracks were covered. Terminal City soon became Manhattan's most desirable commercial and office district. A 1920 New York Times article said, "With its hotels, office buildings, apartments and underground Streets it not only is a wonderful railroad terminal, but also a great civic centre." Most of these buildings were designed by Warren and Wetmore, which had also designed the terminal itself. According to Christopher Gray of The New York Times, the Biltmore was "the linchpin of what was called Terminal City", being one of the district's first large buildings. Warren and Wetmore had co-designed the terminal with Reed and Stem, but Warren and Wetmore took full credit for the design of Terminal City. This was because, after Charles A. Reed of Reed and Stem had died in 1911, Warren and Wetmore had secretly renegotiated their architectural contract with the New York Central. The Biltmore was one of several hotels developed in Terminal City, along with other hostelries such as the Commodore, the Roosevelt, and the