By Donald Wittkowski
Jimmy Bennett is planning for the next two years. Chris Glancey is planning for the next 50, maybe more.
The prominent businessmen are playing key – yet decidedly different – roles in the fate of the LaCosta Lounge, the iconic Sea Isle City nightclub that has been serving customers since the 1960s.
In a deal announced this week, Glancey and his business partner, Bob Morris, have purchased the LaCosta for $7.3 million from Tony and Nick Giampietro, the brothers who built the nightclub about 50 years ago.
Bennett, who operates LaCosta under a lease that expires Sept. 30, 2019, has begun the planning process for keeping the nightclub open for two more years. Glancey and Morris, meanwhile, are discussing long-range redevelopment plans that could, theoretically, affect the property for the next 50 years or longer, Glancey acknowledged.
Expressing no regrets whatsoever over the LaCosta’s sale and proposed redevelopment, Bennett said he is determined to make sure the nightclub goes out in “grand style.”
“I wish everyone well,” Bennett said in an interview Friday. “This is a nice deal for everybody. I’m tickled pink with the way everything has turned out.”
Glancey and Morris plan to demolish the LaCosta complex to make room for new attractions. They are discussing the possibility of building new restaurants, bars, a hotel and retail shops or a combination of all of those things, Glancey said.
They will likely take at least six months before making a decision. Construction probably wouldn’t start until late 2019, at the earliest, pending all of the planning and regulatory approvals, Glancey said.
Alluding to the historic significance of the high-profile LaCosta site, Glancey emphasized that the land will continue to be used for commercial development instead of serving as a platform for new housing construction.
“No. 1 on my list, the corner stays commercial. That is really important,” he said Friday. “That is the most important commercial corner on the island. It needs to stay commercial.”
LaCosta sits at the corner of John F. Kennedy Boulevard and Landis Avenue, the gateway to the downtown business district. Bennett and Glancey believe it is the most prominent location for a business in the entire town.
“This is a Sea Isle landmark location, so he has to get it right,” Bennett said of Glancey’s redevelopment plans.
The same site is where some of the city’s most famous businesses once stood, including the former Bellevue Hotel as well as Cronecker’s Hotel & Restaurant. The Bellevue and Cronecker’s were influential in Sea Isle’s early development as a beach resort beginning in the late 1800s. The Giampietro brothers demolished Cronecker’s to build the LaCosta Lounge in the 1960s.
Mindful of the property’s history, Glancey said he and Morris are determined to develop a major commercial attraction that will continue to make the corner of JFK Boulevard and Landis Avenue a centerpiece of Sea Isle’s business community.
“We don’t ever want the corner to become vacant,” Glancey said.
The LaCosta’s purchase by Glancey and Morris gives them ownership of the building as well as the Coast Motel, the Casino Steaks & Pizzeria and a parking lot that are also part of the entire 1.25-acre complex.
Commercial projects, such as what Glancey and Morris are planning, will help Sea Isle’s business community catch up with the demand for new restaurants, nightclubs and retail shops created by the town’s housing boom in the past 20 years, Glancey explained.
“Bob and I both believe in Sea Isle very much. We believe the future of Sea Isle is terrific,” Glancey said.
Sea Isle is in a transition phase in which some of its most storied bars and nightclubs are reaching the end of their “useful lives,” Glancey pointed out.
LaCosta’s proposed redevelopment is a prime example. The Springfield Inn, a fixture of Sea Isle’s entertainment scene since the 1970s, is another. The Springfield is on the market for $6.7 million as part of a redevelopment plan to turn the beachfront nightclub into a new restaurant, outdoor bar and condominium complex.
An undisclosed buyer has a tentative deal to take over and redevelop the Springfield after the summer season. Glancey and Morris are not involved in the Springfield deal.
As real estate developers, Glancey and Morris have already invested millions of dollars for new projects that have revitalized Sea Isle’s Townsends Inlet section. They began in 2016 with their trendy Dunes development, a restaurant, banquet and condominium complex on Landis Avenue between 86th and 87th streets.
They have followed up on the Dunes with two more mixed-use projects in Townsends Inlet called the Cove and the Cape. The three-story buildings, which blend retail, commercial and condo space, are located a block from each other on Landis Avenue between 85th and 87th streets.
“Everything they have done so far has been first class,” Bennett said, while expressing confidence in Glancey and Morris’ ability to transform the LaCosta property.
In the meantime, what happens to LaCosta before it is demolished? Bennett offered assurances that it will be business as usual in the next two years.
Both the Insiders band and legendary Philadelphia disc jockey Jerry Blavat, longtime headliners of the LaCosta’s entertainment lineup, will continue to perform at the club.
Bennett predicted there will be no decline in LaCosta’s popularity during the final two summers. Over the years, LaCosta has been a hotspot for high school reunions, weddings and birthday parties.
“We’re packed every weekend,” Bennett said.
LaCosta also serves as the entertainment epicenter for Sea Isle’s Polar Bear Weekend celebration, the colorful annual event that draws thousands of visitors to town in February for partying, dining, shopping and a chilly plunge in the ocean.
Bennett bought the LaCosta business and liquor license from the Giampietro brothers in 1993 and has operated the nightclub through a 25-year lease. The lease was extended for an additional two years under the deal with Glancey and Morris. The Giampietros controlled the site through their ownership of the land and the buildings, paving the way for them to sell the complex.
According to Bennett, it was no surprise that the Giampietro brothers – Nick is 92 years old and Tony is 80 – decided to part with the LaCosta. He said they nearly sold it about 10 years ago and were looking to make a deal this time around.
Bennett’s arrangement with the Giampietros gave him first rights to buy the LaCosta property. He said he considered purchasing it, but instead has decided to focus on the rebranding of another well-known Sea Isle business he owns, the Lobster Loft restaurant.
The bayfront Lobster Loft on 42nd Place is being transformed into a pub-style restaurant called the Oar House. Bennett plans to have some of the popular entertainers from the LaCosta, including the Insiders and Jerry Blavat, also perform at the Oar House.
“It’s going to be a great pub-style restaurant, with great entertainment, a great menu and great fun,” Bennett said.
Earlier this year, Bennett had the Lobster Loft on the market for $2.5 million. He changed his mind about possibly selling the restaurant to Glancey when he decided to rebrand it into the Oar House.
