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Post by fuzzyscorpio on Jul 21, 2006 1:56:42 GMT -5
Here's another picture I took last August in the nick of time, but in this case I didn't need my feminine intuition to direct me--by then the Silver Beach had a big sign near the entrance to its parking lot showing a rendering of the condo that was planned to rise in its place. I had stayed there only once, in 2003, but my fonder memory of the motel was of a very old family habit--leaving our beach spot in front of the Atlantis Lodge to trudge through the sand to the Silver Beach for an afternoon ice cream cone.  It was a solid little place... I wish the owners had had family who wanted to keep it alive. I think the guy I talked to that day, who said he was a regular guest of the motel, told me that having no heirs who cared to run the Silver Beach was a factor in their decision to let it go. It is a story I have heard more than once down there. Of course it's common for children to want to break away from the family business, in general... but these motels were some very special businesses. Hard to imagine not jumping at the chance. |
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Post by FlyinGN on Jul 21, 2006 8:07:02 GMT -5
I agree scorpio.. I know it IS hard work.. but everything that is worth it is..
I would love to own a hotel in ww and to run it.
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Post by Al Alven on Jul 21, 2006 11:11:54 GMT -5
Beautiful picture, fuzzy, and some great memories!
As much as I enjoy taking pics of neon signs at night, I think they always look their best right at dusk -- Enough so that they are lit brightly, but still have the darkened blue sky (with a hint of sunset) as a backdrop.
It's a real shame that the Silver Beach could not be saved. Both the motel and the sign were destroyed, unfortunately.
I'm glad the owners were able to make out well on the sale, and I really appreciate their dedication to the Wildwoods with a business like this for all of those years.
Too bad it couldn't be passed on to someone, though.
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Post by hulk007 on Jul 21, 2006 15:35:01 GMT -5
I work with someone who was staying at the silver beach for years. Doesn't the owner of the place (Silver Beach) also own the Reges? I don't know if anyone agrees but the Silver beach looked very much out of place once the frontier and tempo came down and it was the last motel on the block.
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Post by fuzzyscorpio on Jul 21, 2006 18:15:44 GMT -5
Hulk, yes, the Reges and Silver Beach were owned by the same family. If I'm not mistaken, the current owner of the Reges is the son of the couple who owned the Silver Beach. His grandma and grandpa, the Bianchis, ran the Reges originally. I wasn't crazy about the Silver Beach, but it was better than decent, and it was on the beach. I mourn most of the wrecked motels, and ALL of the lost accommodations they represent, but I find the exchange of a beachfront motel for a condo especially distressing. We always thought the most wonderful of all the Crest's wonders was that it was open and accessible to everyone, and as long as you weren't dirt poor you could have the uplifting experience of living on that incredible beach for at least a few days a year. These condos are a plague culturally as much as they are (with a few exceptions) aesthetically. Excuse the negativity  |
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Post by fuzzyscorpio on Jul 21, 2006 18:24:25 GMT -5
Thanks!  Oh, man, that makes me feel ill... Where was your guy Fred Musso on this one? Isn't someone looking out for these things now that the Neon Garden is being established? Or do they already have way more signs than they can find space to display from so many lost motels? |
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Post by hulk007 on Jul 21, 2006 22:54:11 GMT -5
Hulk, yes, the Reges and Silver Beach were owned by the same family. If I'm not mistaken, the current owner of the Reges is the son of the couple who owned the Silver Beach. His grandma and grandpa, the Bianchis, ran the Reges originally. I wasn't crazy about the Silver Beach, but it was better than decent, and it was on the beach. I mourn most of the wrecked motels, and ALL of the lost accommodations they represent, but I find the exchange of a beachfront motel for a condo especially distressing. We always thought the most wonderful of all the Crest's wonders was that it was open and accessible to everyone, and as long as you weren't dirt poor you could have the uplifting experience of living on that incredible beach for at least a few days a year. These condos are a plague culturally as much as they are (with a few exceptions) aesthetically. Excuse the negativity You are correct. Sadly the beachfront motels are becoming fewer and further between. There's nothing like having a room that looks out onto the beach/ocean. Like the ad for amex goes: priceless. |
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Post by novacancy on Jul 23, 2006 6:07:52 GMT -5
That is a great photo. I'm glad you captured it. And, at the perfect time, just as the sun is setting.
For years we stayed at the Lampliter, which used to sit across the then empty lot (now Beldens Coastal Colors) from the Silver beach. I used to love to sit outside and look across the empty lot at the neon lights of the Silver Beach, the Frontier and the Tempo. In the distance you could also see the glow of the BaliHi and the Blue Water.
My how things have changed. Now the Lampliter is a little motel surrounded on all sides by huge condos. I wonder how long they will survive in the shadows of these developments. Behind them the Crest and the Town and Country are gone as well as all the motels on the same block (the Georgianna/Memory, the Catalina...don't know if the MarkIV is there or not).
Good to take pictures while you still can.
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Post by Doowopper on Jul 23, 2006 6:15:59 GMT -5
I saw an oceanfront motel that said "Mark I". Either it's a different motel, the "V" fell off, or one of us just saw the sign wrong haha.
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Post by fuzzyscorpio on Jul 23, 2006 11:42:40 GMT -5
Mark I, yes, and it's still there. According to what you all are telling me, it must be the only thing left standing on that block besides the Lampliter.  Thanks for the compliment novacancy. Have you been by the Lampliter lately? It annexed the property next door a couple of years ago I guess, so it's two buildings now, which makes me think maybe they're trying to dig in there, but who can tell? I don't remember any signs of demolition behind the Mark I last year. I know the Memory has been gone for a while and I don't recall seeing the Catalina last year either, but I'm wondering about the Town & Country and the Crest--were they demolished during this past off-season? Amen. The Silver Beach would have gotten away from me except that I happened to be doing a last-minute Crest tour last summer to make some notes that would help me remember locations when it came time to plan this year's trip. It was during that tour that I saw the sign in front of the Silver Beach heralding its demise. So I parked the car and took some shots including the one posted here. I think it's because I was so upset by that discovery that I have such gaping holes in both my audio notes and my memory of the blocks in the immediate vicinity to the north. For sure, I'm going to be watching this board for input to my hit list of things I must photograph in September  |
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Post by hulk007 on Jul 23, 2006 23:08:51 GMT -5
The Town and Country I believe is still standing but don't quote me.
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Post by MMM on Jul 23, 2006 23:26:53 GMT -5
No, it's gone...
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Post by hulk007 on Jul 24, 2006 22:34:04 GMT -5
When did it come down? I thought it was still standing last year.
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Post by hulk007 on Jul 24, 2006 22:44:40 GMT -5
With the departure of the Town and Country I think the Caribbean is the last motel on the doo wop calendar.
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Post by hulk007 on Jul 24, 2006 23:11:20 GMT -5
My mistake, the Eden Rock and Carriage Stop are still up. Was mixing up the Carriage Stop with the Town and Country. Did the Town and Country have a horse in front of it?
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