By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
The development company that demolished the old Springfield Inn to make room for a new outdoor bar and restaurant paid $5 million for the prime beachfront property, according to real estate records.
After tearing down the Springfield Inn in February, GMH Restaurant Holdings III has started construction at the corner of 43rd Street and Pleasure Avenue as it races to have its project ready in time for Memorial Day weekend.
“Construction is underway pursuant to our site plan approved with the zoning approval. The goal is to be open by Memorial Day,” GMH said in a statement issued Sunday by its public relations firm, Gregory FCA.
The famously casual Springfield Inn is being replaced by an upscale island-themed outdoor bar and restaurant called The Point at Sea Isle City. It will be modeled after a similar GMH project, also called The Point, that has been a success in Somers Point.
Gary Holloway, founder of GMH, promises that his Sea Isle project will be a unique attraction bringing a whole new vibe to the beach resort.
In an interview early in February, Holloway said the transition from the deteriorated old Springfield Inn to The Point would be an improvement that “can only go up a thousand percent.”
The Springfield Inn had been on the market for $6.7 million, but GMH paid $5 million to acquire the property, according to real estate transactions published in the Cape May County Herald. GMH bought the site after an earlier deal between the Springfield Inn and another development group fell through.
City Council approved the transfer of the Springfield Inn’s liquor license to GMH in February. The Springfield Inn was the only beachfront business in Sea Isle that had a liquor license, making it a prime candidate for redevelopment.
Owned by the Bisciotti family, the Springfield was a Sea Isle landmark since 1972. It closed for good in September 2019 in anticipation that the property would be sold then to a Pennsylvania-based investment group that had proposed building a three-story complex featuring an outdoor bar, restaurant, banquet facility and condominiums on top.
However, that deal fell through in 2020, allowing Holloway and GMH Restaurant Holdings to step in as the new buyers. The deal was completed in late February.
“As we start a new chapter in our lives we wish the absolute best to the new owner, Gary Holloway, and his team as they develop the property into their vision,” members of the Bisciotti family said in a statement posted on the Springfield Inn Facebook page.
For decades, the Springfield Inn and its outdoor Carousel Bar were known as a haven for casually dressed customers who would stop by for drinks directly off the beach.
With the Springfield’s old buildings demolished and now cleared away, construction crews have begun the work of transforming the property into an outdoor bar and restaurant featuring a tiki-style theme.
GMH will have just 10 weeks to build the project in order to meet its goal of opening in time for Memorial Day weekend, the traditional start of the bustling summer tourism season at the shore.
