By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
The coronavirus pandemic and its frightening health and economic consequences will undoubtedly make 2020 an unforgettable year.
Although the COVID-19 outbreak dominated the news more than anything else, there were other compelling stories – some good, some bad – in 2020.
As the year comes to an end, here is a snapshot of the most memorable stories in Sea Isle City for 2020 listed in chronological order:
It’s a Girl! Sea Isle City Celebrates First Birth Since 1970s
Jeanne Golato went into labor – and her baby didn’t want to wait for a trip to the hospital.
“It happened so fast,” Golato recalled. “I was having contractions every 30 seconds to a minute. I told my husband to call 9-1-1.”
The call came into the Sea Isle City Police Department at 3:42 p.m. on Jan. 27. The baby was born a mere 10 minutes later with the help of Sea Isle emergency medical technicians and police officers who rushed to the scene.
While the birth of a child is not exactly a rare occurrence in most places, this one was particularly special because it was the first in Sea Isle since 1977, dating back to the days when the town still had its own hospital.
The birth of the baby girl, named Luciana, was cause for celebration during an emotional ceremony at a City Council meeting on Feb. 12.
Sea Isle Hotel Project Wins Zoning Approval
Capping nearly three hours of discussion and debate, the Zoning Board on Feb. 3 approved an all-suite hotel that represents a new wave of development catering to Sea Isle’s more upscale tourism market.
Known as The Ludlam, the project will feature a hotel, restaurant, banquet space and an outdoor bar at the corner of John F. Kennedy Boulevard and Landis Avenue, the main gateway to the city’s downtown business district.
The four-story hotel will take the place of the landmark LaCosta Lounge, an old-school bar that has occupied the same corner for about 50 years.
Christopher Glancey and Bob Morris, the hotel developers, bought the LaCosta for $7.3 million in 2018 and announced plans to replace it with a new centerpiece attraction that reflects the city’s growing demand for more high-end vacation lodging for families.
However, in late 2020, Glancey announced that the hotel project is being revised, which will result in the now-closed LaCosta being reopened for one more summer in 2021.
Thousands Take the “Plunge” in Sea Isle
Whether on a bucket list or a yearly ritual, all of the brave – or crazy – souls who dipped into the chilly ocean for Sea Isle’s Polar Bear Plunge on Feb. 15 got a real wide-eyed wakeup call.
With air temps lingering in the low 30s and the water temperature around 41 degrees, the only warmth in sight came from the dry clothes and towels people clung to after the frantic romp.
Some plungers cheered, others screamed, and others laughed as they swiftly made their surge into the surf.
The annual spectacle, which attracts tens of thousands of visitors to Sea Isle for a weekend of partying, dining and shopping over the Presidents Day holiday, took place before the pandemic forced the cancellation of large events.
Pandemic Strikes Cape May County and Sea Isle
On March 19, Cape May County confirmed its first positive case of coronavirus, a 30-year-old man visiting from New York City.
In the first of a series of precautions to slow the spread of COVID-19, Sea Isle closes its City Council meetings to the public beginning March 24 and instead holds them by teleconference. The Council meetings continue to be held by teleconference.
Sea Isle Mayor Leonard Desiderio announced on March 27 that Sea Isle had closed its beaches and the oceanfront Promenade in response to the pandemic.
However, after a nearly two-month shutdown, the beaches and Promenade fully reopened on May 16, just in time for the start of the summer tourism season.
Sea Isle’s Beaches Getting Lots of New Sand
Excavators, bulldozers and dump trucks mobilized on the beach roared to life on July 1 as work got underway on a project that added more than 750,000 cubic yards of new sand to Sea Isle’s storm-eroded shoreline.
New sand was pumped onto the beaches from a dredge anchored offshore. The project was broken into two parts: 510,000 cubic yards of sand was deposited on the beaches from 74th Street to 93rd Street in Townsends Inlet and another 250,000 cubic yards of sand freshened up the beaches from 28th Street to 52nd Street in the center of town.
Most of the replenishment work involved widening the beaches. However, in some areas the dunes, beach access points and sand fencing were repaired, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the federal agency that oversaw the project.
Taylor Swift Gives Sea Isle a Nod in Video
The slightly faded photo shows a little girl with long blonde hair wearing a gray sweatshirt with the name of a Jersey Shore town written on it – Sea Isle City.
The girl and her family vacationed in Sea Isle years ago, long before she would grow up to become a superstar singer-songwriter.
Sea Isle officials were ecstatic that Taylor Swift resurrected that old photo of herself to include it in the video for her song “Seven,” about childhood memories, from her new album “Folklore” released in July.
The hope around town is that there may be some spin-off effect from the video that could elevate Sea Isle’s profile and possibly give a boost to its tourism market.
Sea Isle Enhances Bayfront With Kayak Launch Site, Fishing Pier
After years of planning, construction got underway in July on Sea Isle’s new kayak launch site, which takes advantage of a picturesque bayfront location. The project will also feature a fishing pier.
The nearly $1 million project will also include decorative lighting and a “passive pier” featuring a covered pavilion. City officials envision the passive pier as a quiet location for nature lovers to enjoy the wildlife, bayfront views and sunsets.
The Boardwalk-style structure will extend 132 feet out into the bay. It is being constructed near 60th Street at the Dealy Field recreation complex.
Although the city had originally hoped to finish the project in 2020, the completion date has been pushed back to March 2021.
Tropical Storm Lashes Sea Isle
The ranch-style home at the corner of 67th Street and Landis Avenue was distinctive not only for its bright pink color, but also because of the canopy of tall trees surrounding the property.
However, four of those trees were blown over by powerful winds unleashed by Tropical Storm Isaias as it moved through Sea Isle on Aug. 4 with destructive force. The trees were leaning precariously against the house until the homeowner, 91-year-old Claire Johnson, had them cut down.
The poplar trees had been on her property for 40 years and provided a beautiful green canopy that helped make Johnson’s older home a quaint landmark amid all of the larger, modern houses that dominate the neighborhood these days. Despite having four trees crash against the house, there was only relatively minor damage to the roof.
Throughout Sea Isle, trees, awnings and utility lines were blown down as wind gusts topped 60 mph at the height of the tropical storm. The low-lying barrier island, which is usually susceptible to stormwater, escaped with only minor street flooding.
Sea Isle Gives First Glimpse of Proposed Community Rec Center
After more than two years of preliminary discussions, Sea Isle unveiled conceptual plans Aug. 11 for a multipurpose community center and recreation facility.
The city is planning to demolish the old public school at 4501 Park Road to make way for the community recreation center. The school, which closed in 2012 due to Sea Isle’s declining student population, occupies the entire block bordered by Park Road, Central Avenue, 45th Street and 46th Street.
Although construction is expected to begin in 2021, the community recreation center isn’t scheduled to open until spring 2023, barring any delays with the project as it moves through different phases from the drawing board to groundbreaking. The cost is estimated at $15 million.
Amenities are expected to include a full-size gymnasium, basketball court, an elevated walking track, pickleball courts and workout rooms.
Far more than a recreation facility, the building would also include a proposed cafeteria, catering kitchen, meeting space and a 140-seat auditorium for plays and other cultural events as part of its dual role as a community center.
Springfield Inn Site to Become Beach Bar Under New Buyer
Just weeks after one deal for the property fell through, a new buyer stepped forward to purchase the iconic Springfield Inn and plans to transform the site into an outdoor bar and restaurant that would open for next summer.
Gary Holloway, founder of GMH Restaurant Holdings, announced on Oct. 27 that his plans for the Springfield Inn site will be modeled after an outdoor beach-themed bar he has developed in Somers Point, called The Point.
The Springfield Inn will be demolished to make room for an attraction that would bring “a whole new flair to Sea Isle,” he said.
Springfield Inn, a Sea Isle landmark since the 1970s, closed in September 2019 in anticipation of its sale then to a Pennsylvania-based development group. When that proposed deal fell through, GMH emerged as a new buyer.
During a meeting Dec. 22, the Sea Isle Zoning Board approved GMH’s plan to demolish the dilapidated Springfield Inn and replace it with an upscale island-themed bar and restaurant just steps from the beach. The grand opening is expected in May 2021.
Biker’s Cross-Country Journey Ends in Triumph in Sea Isle
Matt DiNote was overcome by emotion as soon as he arrived in Sea Isle on Dec. 19, the culmination of an arduous, 4,400-mile, cross-country journey powered by his legs and inspired by the love for his brother.
“Oh, my God,” he said softly as he bowed his head and wiped away tears while sitting on his bike.
Minutes later, he and his brother, Michael, embraced each other during a tender moment that brought more tears flowing down the cheeks of family members and well-wishers who had welcomed Matt back to Sea Isle with cheers and applause.
DiNote embarked on his cross-country journey on Aug. 30 in San Diego to raise money for Eden Autism Services, a nonprofit organization based in Princeton, N.J., that provides education and therapy for children and adults who have autism.
His inspiration for the trip was his brother, Michael, 25, who has autism and Down’s syndrome.
DiNote ceremoniously dipped his back bike tire in the Pacific Ocean when he set out from California in August. In a triumphant touch to end the trip, he walked his bike out on the beach at 65th Street in Sea Isle and dipped his front tire in the Atlantic Ocean.
His journey was hailed as a moment of hope in 2020 amid the horrors of the pandemic.
