Oceanview Motel status

[MMM]

fuzzyscorpio said:

I talked briefly with the woman who was working the front desk Sunday night. On duty along with her was a fellow I remember talking to last year. The woman said she knew there were "a lot of rumors" going around but that according to a recent update given to the hotel's managers, the owners are not selling. "Doo-wop saved it," she said with an enigmatic smile, adding, "You're not allowed to tear it down because of this" and gesturing in the general direction of the sloping roof. She told me that a complete renovation of the hotel will probably begin after the '07 season.

Thanks Kathi. I can assure you this was all much more than a "rumor", as I had contact with someone last year very close to all this. Hope this works out and they do right by the Ocean View...

[hulk007]

fuzzyscorpio said:

thelastresort said:

I think rising interest rates and overflowing condo inventory saved it.

A very strong possibility, of course. I get the feeling the hotel/motel owners who have held out for top dollar until now have probably pushed their luck way too far.

But I don't want to be too picky at this point. What matters most is that it's survived another year, and that there's a chance either these owners or a new owner will bring it back to a flourishing state, if it's fixed up. And maybe, just maybe, that little piece of the oceanfront will remain isolated from the plague of faceless, unfriendly condos that are so antithetical to the 20th-century spirit of the Wildwoods.

If this info is accurate Kathi and it sounds like it is this a big step in the right direction for saving the remaining landmark motels.

[FlyinGN]

damn good news:)

[Rob Ascough]

Convincing people that are focused on "green" to do something that won't get them as much green is a tough, if not downright impossible, task. It sounds like the owners don't give a damn about preservation and how important that kind of architecture is to the island so I don't know what can be done. I hate to say that but it's the horrible truth in some cases.

[Doowopper]

I am going to do some math here, everything is pretty much made up but just to get an idea about how much money can be pulled in from a large motel.

Let's say the motel has 45 rooms
It is open for 7 full months, apprx 200 days
All rooms cost $175 a night.
That means, over a full season and full vacancy, one room will pull in $35,000
If all 45 rooms were full all year it would be 1,575,000.

I'm still drugged from motion sickness pills after going crabing, but I think that is correct. The whole no vacancy for the whole season thing is a bit hopeful, but this was just to get some wild idea on what could get pulled in. If rooms were $250 a night a whopping $2,250,000 would be pulled in. Even with wages etc., your still pulling in a good sum of money, or at least I think so. Hopefully all the math is right, I still feel like I'm on a rocking boat, ugh.

But in the end it comes down to this. Many people are to obsessed with bringing in money. The wealthier people in my family pulling almost $200,000 a year are the most unhappy. The most successful motels in the Wildwoods are owned by people who don't moan about all the work they have to do, but just do it and are happy doing it because they love their job and their motel. Unless the owners of any motel are focused on preserving their motel, and enjoy their job, not much good will come out of it. Looking for the quickest buck so you can retire to Florida and have everyone you know begging for your money is not going to do any motel any good.

The Oceanview is kind of bland now. The sloping roof is great but with the right owners, it could be awesome. An aqua color scheme, a neon high-reader sign, clear blue glass on the lobby windows and some neon outlining the sloping roofs could be the start to a really hip looking motel. But like I said before, you need someone with money, someone with vision, and someone who wants to take on the task and stick with it, and love every bit of it. I have all the above, as do most of us, except the 18 million

[thelastresort]

Intersting perspective, Doowopper.

I think what it boils down to is: let's say you can run it and make $200K per year for the next 20 years (adjusted for inflation, of course), so $4M over time. Or, you sell it and "poof", you get $3 million tomorrow. Most folks would take the $3 million now. who wouldn't?

[Doowopper]

I wouldn't. I have no need for 3 million now. Crap, 200 thousand a year sounds pretty dman good to me! You could even live in your motel year round or during the summer. Not bad if you ask me. But like you said, it's just my perspective, and most people do not share my perspective.

You see, I think it would be great to run a real hip place in the wildwoods, and to be able to say "that awesome place is mine".

However, most people would rather say "that 3 million is mine" haha!

[thelastresort]

doowopper2 said:

I wouldn't. I have no need for 3 million now. Crap, 200 thousand a year sounds pretty dman good to me! You could even live in your motel year round or during the summer. Not bad if you ask me. But like you said, it's just my perspective, and most people do not share my perspective.

You see, I think it would be great to run a real hip place in the wildwoods, and to be able to say "that awesome place is mine".

However, most people would rather say "that 3 million is mine" haha!

Brother, I'd take the 3M now, and light up the big Bob Marley joint -- just kidding about this part, but not kidding about taking the $3M now, even invested in a relatively safe fund, you can get your $200K per year, for doing nothing! and without touching a dime of the $3M principle.

[FlyinGN]

sad to admit. but Im with lastresort.... I guess after working almost 30 years now Id love to grab a 3 mil retirement while Im still young nuff to enjoy it.. So th eproblem does not lie in the motel owners taking such tempting offers it lies in the zoning that alows the change from motel to residental.. If they did not allow that change it would solve the whole classic hotel and business loss in WW.

[thelastresort]

I agree, Flyin, it's not greed, it's reality. Sad, but true.

like we've been saying all along, if they allow development, it will happen, especially with the obscene sums of money that are being offered...

[JIMD]

doowopper2 said:

I am going to do some math here, everything is pretty much made up but just to get an idea about how much money can be pulled in from a large motel.

Let's say the motel has 45 rooms
It is open for 7 full months, apprx 200 days
All rooms cost $175 a night.
That means, over a full season and full vacancy, one room will pull in $35,000
If all 45 rooms were full all year it would be 1,575,000.



Well If we were to dissect your business plan the first thing one would notice is Wildwood has a 4 month season with only July and August charging peak rates and at a 90% occupancy rate. I would guess June and Sept have a weekday vacancy rate of about 75% and may sell out some weekends.

Up keep on these places is super expensive, forget the employees salaries as they are relatively low. How about insurance (liability), Electric and cable TV for every room plus real estate taxes.

I have said this before, we enjoy vacationing in the Wildwood's, running a hotel is far from a vacation. I'd take the 3 mil and the 150K/year guaranteed income in a second and live the whole summer in Wildwood

[nance]

It's not all about the bringing in all that money. There are alot of headaches that go with it; like running a business. I'm sure you get alot of young people (or older), that trash rooms, also. I worked in a motel cleaning rooms and believe me, I KNOW what trashed rooms look like! So you have the headache of the up-keep, paying employees, utilities, taxes. I really don't know if I could handle all of that. I think all of you are just thinking of someone pulling in all that money, but there's alot more that goes with it. I've seen many many young kids who party all night long, too and I'm sure those rooms are a sight to see later.

[thelastresort]

nance said:

It's not all about the bringing in all that money. There are alot of headaches that go with it; like running a business. I'm sure you get alot of young people (or older), that trash rooms, also. I worked in a motel cleaning rooms and believe me, I KNOW what trashed rooms look like! So you have the headache of the up-keep, paying employees, utilities, taxes. I really don't know if I could handle all of that. I think all of you are just thinking of someone pulling in all that money, but there's alot more that goes with it. I've seen many many young kids who party all night long, too and I'm sure those rooms are a sight to see later.

Amen. I've know alot of people who have run or owned motels, and their vacation is from October to April, when the place is closed. The summer months are living hell. That's why, as sad as it is, I can't really blame the folks for taking the money, as I've indicated in the posts above.

I think it is similar to what is happening to farmlands, etc. The younger generation is off to college, pursuing careers, etc., which is a good thing. So when the developer comes knocking, who can resist taking the cash? especially after having worked the land for generations.

Like the adage goes "if you build it, they will come". If the price is right, it's gone.


But, like we have been seeing, the market will self-govern. I sincerely doubt if we will see the carnage of motels in the foreseeable future that we did in the last 3 years.