Robert De Niro's Greenwich Hotel in New York only opened in April but it has hit a variety of snags including getting zero stars for its Ago restaurant by NY Times critic Frank Bruni, The most recent problem involves the hotels lavish rooftop penthouse. The best suite in the $43 million hotel has run a foul of the New York Landmarks Preservation Commission which says that the penthouse does not match the design that they approved in 2004.

On Tuesday De Niro appeared at a panel hearing to ask commission members to give him a break and not make he and his partners remove the suite (an estimated $1.5 million cost) and start over. De Niro said that they worked on the project a long time and tried their best to make it fit into the historic neighborhood. At the panel fellow celebrity and neighbor, actor/director Ed Burns testified that the architecture is beautiful.

The penthouse has a mansard roof and other decorative details which, according to Nadezhda Williams of the Historic Districts Council, make it seem more residential and out of style with the other more industrial buildings in the area. She is calling to have the penthouse called for in De Niro's plans to be built instead. No decision was reached on Tuesday but they will discuss the hotel at a future meeting and may consider less drastic measures such as changing the exterior o the penthouse from stucco to glass and metal.

Rates at the hotel have varied. They were originally supposed to start at $775 but now it looks like you can get in for $525 a night which is pretty reasonable for New York City.