I like (some of the) condos

[thelastresort]

there, I've said it. I feel so much better. Like the weight of the world has been lifted.

I think I'll go grab a six pack and sit in the park now, and let the light and space put the zap in my head.

frogstar.soylentgeek.com/wav/livenow.wav

[Al Alven]

I like a lot of them too. Always have.

The trend just exploded way too quickly, IMO. I think many opportunties were lost to preserve and further promote a lot of the Wildwoods' history and heritage, because developers were in such a hurry (and were allowed) to transform the island.

Change is good and natural and all of that, but unchecked, rampant redevelopment -- especially in an area that had remained virtually unchanged for decades -- was simply an irresponsible mistake made by the island's leaders.

Some of the condos are horrendously ugly, hideous structures. Vinyl, bland garbage. I wouldn't want to spend $250,000 or more to live in a grey, lifeless box, regardless of the "luxury" inside. But that's just me.

Others are nice, and fit in pretty well with the character of the area. I think, in some cases, we remember what was lost, and that makes some of these new places tough to stomach at first. Within a few years, who knows, we might even grow fond of many of them.

I miss the Thunderbird, but I'll be the first to admit that the condos going up in its place look really nice. I still think this would've been a great spot and opportunity for a "NEW" T-Bird Hotel, or some other "improvement," but it didn't happen. Oh, well.

Hits and misses. The island remains in a "transitional" period, and only time will tell just how we embrace all the changes once all is said and done.

[hulk007]

The Hawaii Kai condos look cool. Does anyone have a pic they could post?

[thelastresort]

I think after this last trip, I'm becoming more pro-condo, at least the new ones. Or maybe I should say, pro new construction. Those along Ocean ave are swee-eet. Just not worth the money, in my opinion.

[mickeyfinz]

SOME of the condos are designed to be different, ie, Key West @ 6th and Ocean and the new ones @ 3rd and Ocean (both sides), but the hideous "shoe boxes" stacked on top of one another with connecting OUTSIDE steps shouild never have been granted approval. Those will turn WW into Ocean City South (have you seen THAT lately?). I am in the market to "trade up" from my small condo, but I have been in NW too long and gotta' have a yard for BBQ and Doo-Wop music w/some cold ones! None of the condos can't give u that!

[Doowopper]

Some of the newer condos are looking pretty good. The Hawaii Kai condos will be a prime examle of creativity. But the problem remains, no matter how cool they look, they are still condos. The Wildwoods need a solid hotel/motel base for summer tourists. The best thing would be for the new condos to keep being designed creatively, and get some new boutique hotels built to balance everything out. It's quite a pipe dream at this point, but that would be the best thing for the area, in my opinion.

[fuzzyscorpio]

doowopper2 said:

the problem remains, no matter how cool they look, they are still condos.

Thank you We seem to keep getting stuck at the appearance level... and you can't stop there, you have to examine how things function--what role they play in the community and the local economy.

[wildwood4life]

The ones on 17th Street where Johnny's Pizza once was are actually pretty cool. The different colors bring out the creativity....at least a little

[thelastresort]

most of the ones built in the last year or so are a huge improvement over what was being put up 3-5 years ago, at least in southern WW and in the crest. The ones along Oceanic are sweet, and as much as I miss looking at the Carousel, at least they replaced it with something nice, not a bland gray shandy.