Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club Launches Public Fight After Court Orders Eviction
After 76 years of service, the Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club in Cape May is facing eviction from its longtime home within the Cape May Point Wildlife Management Area, following a New Jersey appellate court ruling that sided with the Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP).
The ruling stems from a years-long legal dispute over the club’s lease status and operations on the property, which the DEP purchased in the late 1990s as part of a state-managed wildlife area.
The court determined that the club no longer holds a valid lease and must vacate the site, effectively ending nearly seven decades of continuous use.
Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club Launches Public Fight After Court Orders Eviction
Why the DEP Wants the Club Gone
According to state filings and court documents, the DEP’s push to remove the club centers on three main issues.
1 – Alcohol Use Violations
The DEP prohibits alcohol on all state-managed wildlife lands. However, the Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club has long maintained a liquor license through Lower Township and served alcohol at its facility. DEP officials say this directly violates Fish and Wildlife regulations, which ban the consumption, possession, or control of alcoholic beverages on such properties.
The agency claims it asked the club to end alcohol service as early as 2018, but that the practice continued. In its legal filings, the DEP described this as a “nonconforming use” inconsistent with the state’s management goals.
The club disputes this, saying the state had been aware of and tacitly approved the practice for decades, pointing out that the license was renewed annually without objection. They also note that other DEP properties, such as White Oaks Golf Course, have been granted exceptions for alcohol sales.
2 – Conflict with Conservation Funding and Mission
DEP also argues that the club’s private use of the land conflicts with the conservation and wildlife purposes tied to federal funding used to acquire and maintain the area.
The agency claims allowing a private bar and clubhouse to operate could jeopardize compliance with federal programs, including the National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant, which requires the land to be used primarily for environmental protection and recreation.
The club disputes this, saying its small half-acre footprint on the edge of the management area doesn’t interfere with conservation efforts. They also point to a letter from the U.S. Department of the Interior stating that if the state no longer needed the land, it could legally sell it, undercutting the DEP’s claim that federal restrictions prevent a sale.
3 – No Valid Lease and “Holdover Tenant” Status
The court found that the club’s original 1982 lease, inherited when DEP acquired the land, expired years ago. DEP argues the club failed to renew it and has since occupied the property without authorization, classifying it as a “holdover tenant.”
Under state law, this gives the DEP the right to evict. The appellate court agreed, ruling that DEP properly followed procedures and gave sufficient notice.
The club, however, insists that DEP officials previously promised they could stay long-term, provided they continued to offer public benefits such as restrooms, beach cleanups, and charitable programs.
Club Members Ask for Help
The Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club members are urging the public to help save their home, emphasizing their long record of community service. The group says it has kept Sunset and Higbee’s Beaches clean and supported causes such as Toys for Tots, student scholarships, and charitable donations for decades.
The club says it has offered to purchase the property outright, and that the U.S. Department of the Interior approved the sale, but that the NJDEP “refuses to address” the offer and intends to let the property “lay fallow and unused.”
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The group is now calling on the public to show support by texting the governor directly at (732) 605-5455 with the following message.
“Hello Governor Murphy, my name is [Your Name] and I am writing to express my support for the NJDEP to sell the Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club their historic ½-acre property in Cape May, New Jersey, as is explicitly allowed by U.S. DOI regulations.”
What Happens Next
The DEP has not said what will happen to the building once the club vacates. The court ruling gives the state full possession of the site, and the agency maintains it must comply with federal wildlife management rules.
Meanwhile, the Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club hopes that growing public support and the governor’s attention may lead to a resolution that allows them to remain on the land they’ve cared for since the 1940s.
Do you think the Sunset Beach Sportsmen’s Club should stay or go? Let us know.
Last Spring, The Wildwood Video Archive stopped by to film the progress on the The Cape May Higbee Beach Wildlife Restoration Project. You can watch that video below.