Post by Doo Wop Mike D on May 27, 2005 9:06:33 GMT -5
I see we've had quite a spirited debate going on here lately, between the "moving sidewalks" thread and some other posts... and I think that's good... in reality, there are alot of different angles and alot of different viewpoints that need to be considered in the grand scheme of what the DWPL is trying to accomplish and the issue of the Wildwoods' redevelopment in general...
I'm going to offer my own two cents on all this (which will probably be more like 75 cents since brevity is just not my strong point) so for those who actually have the time and energy to read on, here we go...
First of all, anyone (whether pro or anti Doo Wop) who thinks the Wildwoods ought to stay exactly the way they are and not change or progress on any level has a misinformed perspective on things, and ultimately will be disappointed....
The Doo Wop movement was not started as a way to preserve Wildwood's "honky-tonkness" per say or any particular category of culture or demographics... for those who think otherwise, you have a misunderstaning of what this is all about... rather, it was started in the late '90s at a time when the Wildwoods seemed to be going nowhere but downhill, and was seen as a way to revive interest in the town, secure a unique identity, and give us a direction for the future... we happened to find ourselves at that time with a very unique asset, that being the largest concentration of original '50s/'60s era resort architecture anywhere in the world that had managed to survive all these years due to the prior decades of economic stagnation... a tremendous amount of publicity and interest was generated abroad in magazines and newspapers all over the world about the planned Wildwood revival and the unique architecture we had here... I felt a great sense of optimism about where the resort was going in those days around 1999/2000, it seemed like we had turned the page, the lean years of the '90s were over and we were embarking on a slow but steady path towards putting Wildwood back on the map, cleaning up the town, simply making Wildwood a better, more modern version of the same great place its always been... there seemed to be absolutely no reason to demolish the motels at that point, only to encourage renovations, especially since it was the uniqueness of those very motels that got so many people talking about Wildwood again... if anything, with the opening of the new convention center, the concern of the DWPL at that time was that bigger chain hotels might start coming in and would threaten to replace the quirky '50s motels with bland, generic hotels... but at least there was still an understanding at that point that the Wildwoods are a resort destination centered around hotel rooms, not condos and residential properties, unlike all the other Jersey Shore towns... thats what makes Wildwood what it is, and the fact that our hotels happen to be internationally-recognized landmarks of 1950s architecture is just icing on the cake... then, all of a sudden, the residential real estate boom starts, and its as if all the plans and visions from just a few years ago never happened... how quickly we forget where we came from...
While there are a variety of differing viewpoints on the issue of blue sidewalks and 25-story hotels (I have mixed opinions on those two, but for the record, I like the rocket-ship street signs... I'm a fan of anything that gives a place a unique identity and sense of place) but the one thing that anybody, whether a resident, tourist or prospective business owner/investor, with any kind of vision or sense of the future should agree on is that it would be incredibly valuable for this resort to preserve its most unique asset, that being the Doo Wop motel district along Ocean Ave in the Crest... that ought to be one of the core attractions of this resort, and one of the most unique neighborhoods anywhere on the Jersey Shore, or in the entire country for that matter... I do not think every motel on the island should be preserved, I do not think condos and residential development are a bad thing, and I think its great to see the Wildwoods begin to attract a more diverse clientele... in reality, that is largely the exact kind of end-product the original brains behind the Doo Wop movement would have hoped for - a town that could be an exciting and unique place to vacation, a great place to live year-round or own a second home in, and a resort that would be worthy of increased investment, all at the same time... the problem is we never thought it would all come at the sudden expense of one of the most fundamental pieces of the puzzle and one of the driving forces behind the Wildwoods' initial revival - the unique historic character of the motel district... the free-for-all, short-sighted and completely unplanned way in which we're allowing things to change now threatens to stop the real long-term revival in its tracks and could prevent this town from ever reaching its full potential...
Truly great cities and truly great resorts have much more than just "money" being thrown around in them... the words "upscale" and "sophisticated" get tossed around alot these days by people who don't necessarily have any real business using them, and in my personal opinion, cities that have absolutely no unique character or cultural heritage can hardly be called "sophisticated"... of course the comparison is often drawn between the Wildwoods and Miami Beach, and the story up until recently, is in many ways quite similar... Miami was probably in even worse shape than Wildwood at its low point, but after plenty of battling, the city finally had enough foresight to ensure that the historic Art Deco hotel district would be a permanent part of whatever modern development took place in the rest of the city... needless to say, the Art Deco District in South Beach is now the centerpiece of that resort, a very fashionable and very "sophisticated" neighborhood with a very diverse clientele and a bustling shopping, dining and nightlife scene. Meanwhile, the rest of the area has developed with a modern mix of new condos, new hotels, and other buildings and businesses. The Art Deco District gives the island a historic signature while new residential neighborhoods have been established and there is a diverse offering for people of all backgrounds and tastes. This is not to say that the Wildwoods can or should become like Miami Beach, but the parallels are certainly there.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with new, high-end residential development in the Wildwoods so long as it is properly planned and kept in properly designated residential neighborhoods. A strip of new luxury condos for people who can genuinely afford them and genuinely want to be a part of this community could be the perfect complement to the other distinct parts of this island, from the Doo Wop motel district to the boardwalk to the downtown area to the traditional residential neighborhoods. All we ask for is to have the historic core of our Doo Wop district preserved and landmarked for future generations so that it can become one of the many distinct features, both old and new, that this island offers. We should embrace it as part of our identity, sell it as a unique attraction, and be proud to live, own or vacation in such a unique place.
No one wants a bunch of old, run-down motels with poor service and outdated amenities... but if we can encourage the same kind of investment that's currently going into condo development and put that into the renovation and upgrading of the historic motels, we can have something that no other place in the world has or ever will have again, and we could be attracting that much more of a diverse clientele in the long run.
Doo Wop is a tricky thing. There are some people who will never quite understand or appreciate it and will always see it as just tacky and outmoded in the literal sense. There are others who enjoy the authentic atmosphere of Wildwood as its always been and don't want to see it any other way. Then there are others still who might not necessarily appreciate the original honky-tonk culture that produced the motels in the first place, but see a town that in the 21st century has an amazing collection of mid-century commercial architecture that represents in its own way a sort of cultural sophistication. Places like the Caribbean and Shalimar motels that are renovating and upgrading as modern boutique hotels, and some of the "Neo" Doo Wop like the Wawa and Starlux, are not meant to be taken literally as "tacky"... rather, they are kitschy nods to the design styles and culture of another time period - a time period that has come to define this island for many people, Wildwood loyalists and newcomers alike. Part of the problem is that the Wildwoods are actually still somewhat ahead of their time right now with the idea of preserving the 1950s as a "historic" period. Alot of people still can't stomach the idea of '50s commercialism being anything but just "old" and "outdated", not "historic". That's why a large chunk of our support has come from younger generations and from more progressive areas like New York City and California who see the Wildwoods' Doo Wop architecture as a national treasure.
Time will tell how things ultimately shape up down here... at the least, it is my hope that the decision-makers and powers-that-be will operate from the most well-informed, well-educated perspective as possible on the future ramifications of Doo Wop and all the other issues surrounding the redevelopment/revitalization of this island... my concern is that alot of what is being done right now is being done without any vision or any plan... some things should be left to evolve naturally, but it would make me sleep easier if a public official would actually go on the record with a vision for what kind of town they want this to be, and where they intend to guide it...
Whew that was a long post huh...
I'm going to offer my own two cents on all this (which will probably be more like 75 cents since brevity is just not my strong point) so for those who actually have the time and energy to read on, here we go...
First of all, anyone (whether pro or anti Doo Wop) who thinks the Wildwoods ought to stay exactly the way they are and not change or progress on any level has a misinformed perspective on things, and ultimately will be disappointed....
The Doo Wop movement was not started as a way to preserve Wildwood's "honky-tonkness" per say or any particular category of culture or demographics... for those who think otherwise, you have a misunderstaning of what this is all about... rather, it was started in the late '90s at a time when the Wildwoods seemed to be going nowhere but downhill, and was seen as a way to revive interest in the town, secure a unique identity, and give us a direction for the future... we happened to find ourselves at that time with a very unique asset, that being the largest concentration of original '50s/'60s era resort architecture anywhere in the world that had managed to survive all these years due to the prior decades of economic stagnation... a tremendous amount of publicity and interest was generated abroad in magazines and newspapers all over the world about the planned Wildwood revival and the unique architecture we had here... I felt a great sense of optimism about where the resort was going in those days around 1999/2000, it seemed like we had turned the page, the lean years of the '90s were over and we were embarking on a slow but steady path towards putting Wildwood back on the map, cleaning up the town, simply making Wildwood a better, more modern version of the same great place its always been... there seemed to be absolutely no reason to demolish the motels at that point, only to encourage renovations, especially since it was the uniqueness of those very motels that got so many people talking about Wildwood again... if anything, with the opening of the new convention center, the concern of the DWPL at that time was that bigger chain hotels might start coming in and would threaten to replace the quirky '50s motels with bland, generic hotels... but at least there was still an understanding at that point that the Wildwoods are a resort destination centered around hotel rooms, not condos and residential properties, unlike all the other Jersey Shore towns... thats what makes Wildwood what it is, and the fact that our hotels happen to be internationally-recognized landmarks of 1950s architecture is just icing on the cake... then, all of a sudden, the residential real estate boom starts, and its as if all the plans and visions from just a few years ago never happened... how quickly we forget where we came from...
While there are a variety of differing viewpoints on the issue of blue sidewalks and 25-story hotels (I have mixed opinions on those two, but for the record, I like the rocket-ship street signs... I'm a fan of anything that gives a place a unique identity and sense of place) but the one thing that anybody, whether a resident, tourist or prospective business owner/investor, with any kind of vision or sense of the future should agree on is that it would be incredibly valuable for this resort to preserve its most unique asset, that being the Doo Wop motel district along Ocean Ave in the Crest... that ought to be one of the core attractions of this resort, and one of the most unique neighborhoods anywhere on the Jersey Shore, or in the entire country for that matter... I do not think every motel on the island should be preserved, I do not think condos and residential development are a bad thing, and I think its great to see the Wildwoods begin to attract a more diverse clientele... in reality, that is largely the exact kind of end-product the original brains behind the Doo Wop movement would have hoped for - a town that could be an exciting and unique place to vacation, a great place to live year-round or own a second home in, and a resort that would be worthy of increased investment, all at the same time... the problem is we never thought it would all come at the sudden expense of one of the most fundamental pieces of the puzzle and one of the driving forces behind the Wildwoods' initial revival - the unique historic character of the motel district... the free-for-all, short-sighted and completely unplanned way in which we're allowing things to change now threatens to stop the real long-term revival in its tracks and could prevent this town from ever reaching its full potential...
Truly great cities and truly great resorts have much more than just "money" being thrown around in them... the words "upscale" and "sophisticated" get tossed around alot these days by people who don't necessarily have any real business using them, and in my personal opinion, cities that have absolutely no unique character or cultural heritage can hardly be called "sophisticated"... of course the comparison is often drawn between the Wildwoods and Miami Beach, and the story up until recently, is in many ways quite similar... Miami was probably in even worse shape than Wildwood at its low point, but after plenty of battling, the city finally had enough foresight to ensure that the historic Art Deco hotel district would be a permanent part of whatever modern development took place in the rest of the city... needless to say, the Art Deco District in South Beach is now the centerpiece of that resort, a very fashionable and very "sophisticated" neighborhood with a very diverse clientele and a bustling shopping, dining and nightlife scene. Meanwhile, the rest of the area has developed with a modern mix of new condos, new hotels, and other buildings and businesses. The Art Deco District gives the island a historic signature while new residential neighborhoods have been established and there is a diverse offering for people of all backgrounds and tastes. This is not to say that the Wildwoods can or should become like Miami Beach, but the parallels are certainly there.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with new, high-end residential development in the Wildwoods so long as it is properly planned and kept in properly designated residential neighborhoods. A strip of new luxury condos for people who can genuinely afford them and genuinely want to be a part of this community could be the perfect complement to the other distinct parts of this island, from the Doo Wop motel district to the boardwalk to the downtown area to the traditional residential neighborhoods. All we ask for is to have the historic core of our Doo Wop district preserved and landmarked for future generations so that it can become one of the many distinct features, both old and new, that this island offers. We should embrace it as part of our identity, sell it as a unique attraction, and be proud to live, own or vacation in such a unique place.
No one wants a bunch of old, run-down motels with poor service and outdated amenities... but if we can encourage the same kind of investment that's currently going into condo development and put that into the renovation and upgrading of the historic motels, we can have something that no other place in the world has or ever will have again, and we could be attracting that much more of a diverse clientele in the long run.
Doo Wop is a tricky thing. There are some people who will never quite understand or appreciate it and will always see it as just tacky and outmoded in the literal sense. There are others who enjoy the authentic atmosphere of Wildwood as its always been and don't want to see it any other way. Then there are others still who might not necessarily appreciate the original honky-tonk culture that produced the motels in the first place, but see a town that in the 21st century has an amazing collection of mid-century commercial architecture that represents in its own way a sort of cultural sophistication. Places like the Caribbean and Shalimar motels that are renovating and upgrading as modern boutique hotels, and some of the "Neo" Doo Wop like the Wawa and Starlux, are not meant to be taken literally as "tacky"... rather, they are kitschy nods to the design styles and culture of another time period - a time period that has come to define this island for many people, Wildwood loyalists and newcomers alike. Part of the problem is that the Wildwoods are actually still somewhat ahead of their time right now with the idea of preserving the 1950s as a "historic" period. Alot of people still can't stomach the idea of '50s commercialism being anything but just "old" and "outdated", not "historic". That's why a large chunk of our support has come from younger generations and from more progressive areas like New York City and California who see the Wildwoods' Doo Wop architecture as a national treasure.
Time will tell how things ultimately shape up down here... at the least, it is my hope that the decision-makers and powers-that-be will operate from the most well-informed, well-educated perspective as possible on the future ramifications of Doo Wop and all the other issues surrounding the redevelopment/revitalization of this island... my concern is that alot of what is being done right now is being done without any vision or any plan... some things should be left to evolve naturally, but it would make me sleep easier if a public official would actually go on the record with a vision for what kind of town they want this to be, and where they intend to guide it...
Whew that was a long post huh...