By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
The Sea Isle City Planning Board gave approval Tuesday night to the final details of a redevelopment plan that will transform the landmark Springfield Inn nightclub into a new restaurant, bar and banquet complex topped by condominiums.
A Pennsylvania-based investment group that is buying the Springfield plans to demolish the existing building to make room for a new three-story project capitalizing on the beachfront location.
In a nod to the Springfield Inn’s nearly 50-year history in Sea Isle, the buyers want to preserve the iconic name by retaining it when the property is redeveloped into a new bar and 166-seat restaurant, planning board documents indicate. They also plan to keep the name of the Springfield’s popular outdoor Carousel Bar.
The rest of the project will include a 274-seat banquet hall on the second floor and four upscale condos on the third floor. A garage on the first floor will include nine parking spaces, according to a planning board resolution.
The planning board gave the project site plan approval in September. In a 5-0 vote Tuesday, the board followed up by approving a nine-page resolution that formalizes its action and spells out the details of the project.
Patricia Urbaczewski, the board’s chairwoman, said the Springfield Inn’s replacement should help to keep Sea Isle’s economy and tourism industry “moving up.”
“I think it will be nice. A lot of times before things are built people are skeptical, but after it’s done, they’re fine with it,” Urbaczewski said in an interview after the meeting.
An architectural rendering depicts the three-story restaurant, bar, banquet hall and condominium complex that will replace Springfield Inn.
The Springfield’s coveted beachfront location at 43rd Street and Pleasure Avenue makes it a strong candidate for redevelopment. It is the only beachfront business in Sea Isle that has a liquor license.
The new group taking ownership of the Springfield Inn is called HKM43 LLC. It is an acronym for the initials of the last names of the new owners as well as a reference to the Springfield’s location on 43rd Street.
The three investors will each own a 33.3 percent stake, documents show. They include Brian Halligan, of Flourtown, Pa., John Krinis, of Glenside, Pa., and Chris Myers, of Blue Bell, Pa., according to the planning board documents.
Halligan is the owner and managing partner of MEH Investments, a company that has developed commercial, residential and apartment projects in the Philadelphia area.
Springfield Inn was on the market for more than a year for $6.7 million. It has not yet been disclosed how much the new buyers are paying or whether they have even completed the purchase. Janet DeLorenzo, a real estate agent representing the buyers, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
The Springfield opened in 1972 under the ownership of the Bisciotti family. Sisters Betsy Cooney, Terry Eidenberg and Joanne Bisciotti have followed their parents, Joe and Liz Bisciotti, as the Springfield’s owners.
Customers raise their hands and drinks in tribute to the Springfield Inn while celebrating the bar's last day on Sept. 21.
Neither the buyers nor any of their representatives attended Tuesday’s planning board meeting. During the board’s September meeting, they said the banquet hall for weddings and other special occasions, along with having an outside bar, the only beachfront one in Sea Isle, will generate even more business for the town.
Addressing concerns about possible parking shortages, Halligan explained in September that there are plans to offer valet parking and he is in talks with other businesses to utilize their parking facilities.
Urbaczewski believes that one of the biggest challenges ahead for the Springfield’s new owners will be finding enough workers to staff the banquet hall.
It is not yet clear when the new owners plan to begin construction. Neil Byrne, Sea Isle’s construction official, said a permit has not yet been issued to demolish the existing building. Springfield Inn closed on Sept. 21.
