The Beekman Tower had been built for the Panhellenic Association's New York chapter as a club and hotel for women in college sororities.

The Beekman Tower contains a design with numerous setbacks, chamfers at its corners, and a massing that abuts onto the boundaries of its lot.

Its sculptural ornamentation was designed by Rene Paul Chambellan in the Art Deco style with Gothic influences.

[5] The design was inspired by two plans for the Tribune Tower in Chicago, as well as the American Radiator Building at 40th Street in Midtown Manhattan.

This contrasted with the Gothic-style Tribune Tower and the Gothic and Art Deco-style American Radiator Building, which were both ornately decorated.

[10] The hotel entrance further east on Mitchell Place is distinctive in that it contains a three-story-tall base with three bays, separated by wide pilaster strips, as well as cast-stone moldings.

[10] There was a terrace or "solarium" on the 26th floor, surrounded by balconies, which initially served as a gathering place for female residents.

[3] The lounge contained dark tones and curved patterns that drew attention away from its unusual floor plan, as well as features like pendant-shaped lights, elevator doors with foliage designs, and French style furniture.

[13][3] In the years following World War I, there had been a great increase in the number of female college students, which had long been underrepresented in higher education compared to their male counterparts.

[14][15][16] However, there was a shortage of housing units available in New York City due to inflation and rent controls implemented during World War I, and the few available apartments tended to be overly expensive.

[17] Moreover, options such as hotels and lodges tended to be biased toward men, while self-supporting women's homes mostly catered toward the immigrants and the working class.

[22][23] Hepburn announced the purchase of the Panhellenic's site in March 1927,[24] and construction began on October 10, 1927,[25] with the groundbreaking ceremony held on November 13.

[3] After the hotel was made available to men, it was renamed Beekman Tower (Panhellenic) to present a more inviting image to both genders.

[25] The architect, Sidney Goldhammer, installed bathrooms and kitchenettes in each room, as well as building apartments within the former event spaces.

[4][29] The hotel's guests included actor Geraldine Chaplin, musicians Pearl Bailey and Frank Zappa, and UN delegates.

[36] The Beekman Tower was widely lauded upon its completion, even receiving international recognition when several French architecture publications reported on the structure.

[6] Christopher Gray of The New York Times wrote in 1991 that before the headquarters of the United Nations was built, the structure was "an out-of-place landmark".