Stardust Nightclub to be Demolished – Exclusive
The hay-day of old nightclubs and bars in the Wildwoods are being slowly removed from present history.
In just the past two years we saw the closing of the Shamrock, Kelly’s Cafe, the demolition of M.T. Bottles, 2nd Street Annies and the Fairview.
Some of these places are being replaced by the Copper Dog and the Fairview social, there is one that will be met with a wreaking ball this weekend, the Stardust Nightclub.
Stardust Nightclub to be Demolished – Exclusive
Located at 248 E Schellenger Avenue in Wildwood, New Jersey, the Stardust Nightclub has been sitting empty and abandoned since it closed its doors back after the summer of 2018.
Since its inauguration in 1968, this nightclub has welcomed some of the most renowned performers in the world, including Johnny Maestro & The Brooklyn Bridge, Connie Francis, Don Rickles, The Rascals, Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, and even Ray Charles.
The club had rapidly established itself as one of the top-tier venues in the Wildwoods. However, as the early 2000s approached, it began to lose its appeal and underwent a change in ownership before eventually shutting down permanently.
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There were other management teams that tried to keep the party going but traditional clubs like that were getting faded out for more upscale bars. On top of this, the bar scene on Pacific Ave started to dry up causing other nightclubs like the H20, to close up and be demolished a decade ago.
Originally the nightclub was sold back on March 12th, 2019 for $400,000 to Wall Street Holdings 1 INC.
In the same week though it was revealed that Wall Street Holdings 1 INC had also purchased the old Colleens location and its parking lot which also included another building on Lincoln Avenue.
This INC is linked back to the parent company, Choice Hotels.
Choice Hotels is a Hospitality company that owns the hotel brands Rodeway Inn, IHG Hotels, Radisson Hotels, Holiday Inn, Ascend, Comfort Inn, Quality Inn and so many more.
Choice Hotels had purchased the land to build a 96-room motel under the Comfort Inn & Suites brand and call it “Wildwood Comfort Inn & Suites.”
After the property was sold in 2019, the Stardust liquor license, 0514-33-038-003 became inactive or most commonly known as a pocket license and was sold to Renzi Enterprises, LLC. That LLC is known for a few establishments up on the boardwalk.
Although the plans were approved by the Wildwood Zoning and planning board as well as a CAFRA report, the project was ultimately abandoned and the lots were put up for sale for roughly $3.5 Million.
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The abandoned Colleens, previously Neils Restaurant, had caught fire making the building a public hazard. The building was then demolished for public safety.
Since then, there had been no word on what would become of the building until this week.
Property owners received messages today stating that the building will be demolished this weekend.
This would indicate that the property sold privately, but at this time there is no public record of the sale though it looks like the sale also included the lots next door (the old Colleens).
Demolition equipment started showing up on the property earlier today with crews surveying the building.
The Wildwood Video Archive will have a team filming the demolition this weekend so be sure to subscribe to our Youtube channel, The Wildwood Video Archive.
At this time, there are no plans submitted to the Wildwood Planning and Zoning Board for this property. With a lot of this size and the pre-approval of a 96-room motel, one would think that a new motel could be coming to the area. Only time will tell.
A special Thank you to Cynthia Riemer from Keller Williams Realty Jersey Shore
Below is a tour of Colleens/Neils Restaurant before it caught fire and was demolished.