This place does get pretty good reviews on Trip Advisor although it's hard to get a street sense of where it is other than between the W. Village & The Meat Packing District.
I'm interested in hearing reviews from folks who have stayed there or know someone who has.

I've only read positive things from people who've stayed there but I must admit, the photos online don't appeal much to me. The only negative I've ever heard is owners at times can be a bit brusque/difficult by phone/email on first contact but in person they're fine. Looking on various websites to get an exact location, I'm getting different ones--Christopher st. off Greenwich St. and Barrow St. off Washington st. Either way, it's a great area although pretty far west so not so close to a subway stop. I can't remember what exactly you're looking for but are you wedded to a GV location? Have you looked at west-eleventh.com?

We did look at W 11th and sought to make a reservation there. However, they have a 25% absolutely non-refundable deposit at booking and would require the remainder of payment(also non-refundable) approximately 6 weeks prior to arrival. We are absolutely planning on going to NYC(plane tickets already bought with miles). However, we have elderly parents and I had big time knee surgery that I had not anticipated (twice) in 2008. GV Habitue does require 25% deposit however, it may be refunded with 30 days notice. I know both places are small and need to have a relatively steady sense of who is coming and who is not. The "non refundable" aspect made us rethink W 11th at this time. Perhaps as the dates get closer
we will have a better idea of what is available and what life
looks like(we are going in October).

BTW~friends just got back from a stay at W 11th and thought it was GREAT. They also said the location could not have been better.

Given your situation, it would seem to me that staying in a regular hotel with no cancellation fees and an elevator would make more sense and being close to transportation would be a big issue.

Thanks! The reference to the knee surgery had to do with "things unexpected". Thankfully, I am a new woman and can maneuver stairs and city blocks in a way I once could not.

We usually stay at Inn on 23rd but are thinking we'd like a bit more "space" hence the idea of either W 11th or GV Habitue.

I'd still give up some charm to maintain some flexibility. If you want a place with more space and a kitchen, there are some very good deals floating around on some of the Affinia all suite hotels. The Affinia Dumont and Shelburne Murray Hill are both in the east 30's, as far south as they go.

If it has to be in the village, what about wshotel.com?