SANDY TWO YEARS LATER

Familiar landmarks still missing, two years after Sandy

Jean Mikle
@jeanmikle
Stafford — The abandoned gunning shack on the side of the eastbound causeway to Long Beach Island in 2003. Nothing remained after Sandy washed over it.

The news came in a cryptic message, shared by Harvey Cedars police on Oct. 30, 2012, the day after Sandy hit the Shore. "The Shack was gone as of 7 a.m.," it read.

The weirdly beloved building located on Cedar Bonnet Island had served as a homecoming beacon for thousands of locals and tourists who spotted its ramshackle, weatherbeaten frame on the side of the Route 72 Causeway as they headed for Long Beach Island.

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But like many beloved symbols of the Shore, the old duck-hunting cabin did not survive Sandy's onslaught. "The shack is gone, but always in our hearts!" wrote Lansdale, Pennsylvania, resident Deborah Ditmars on the Save Our Shack on LBI Facebook page.

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"I feel like I've lost an old family friend," Elijah Rockhill wrote.

What was it about the battered old lodge that sparked such strong responses in people? Like other iconic landmarks destroyed by Sandy's winds and waves, the Shack was part of the fabric of the Shore, a marker distinctly connected to its location on the border of LBI.

Monmouth University Professor Peter Reinhart, director of the school's Kislak Real Estate Insitute, said that local landmarks — and the memories they represent — are part of the history of the Shore, and part of the area's allure for both residents and visitors.

BEFORE SANDY: Beachgoers enjoy Donovan’s Reef in Sea Bright on a sunny day. In past years, the bar hosted luminaries such as Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi.
AFTER SANDY: A longtime staple in Sea Bright, Donovan’s Reef, on Ocean Avenue, was reduced to mostly timber. The new Donovan’s will be an elevated structure, raised 17 feet high.

"Everyone's love and history of the Jersey Shore is shaped by sensory memories, remembering the sights, sounds and smells of the Jersey Shore," Reinhart said. "Some of that vision memory is only just that now — a memory."

So it is for the Shack, as well as the Long Beach Island Trailer Park in Holgate. Rebuilt after the devastating March 1962 nor'easter, the trailer park was severely damaged by Sandy. Last year, owner Bob Muroff notified 142 trailer owners that he would not rebuild the park, one of the last vestiges of affordable housing in an area of beachfront mansions.

Further north, the Sea Gull's Nest, the Sandy Hook restaurant and bar owner Ed Segall had owned for more than fifty years, remains closed. The building, famous for its fabulous sunset views, shut down after a dispute with his insurance company left Segall unable to afford the estimated $2 million needed to repair the Sandy-damaged structure.

The building remains closed, although its on the list to be repaired, according to Daphne Yun, spokeswoman for Gateway National Recreation Area. In the meantime, the area has been served by food trucks, which lack the ambience — and the nightly patriotic ceremonies — that were the hallmark of the Sea Gull's Nest.

BEFORE SANDY: Joey Harrison's Surf Club in Ortley Beach was a staple on the oceanfront since 1973.
AFTER SANDY: Owner Joey Barcellona has vowed to rebuild the Surf Club, which had survived dozens of earlier storms.

But some owners of damaged or destroyed landmarks have vowed to bring them back, although the process has proved to be more trying than they could have initially imagined.

In July, restauranteur Tim McLoone and his wife, Beth, watched with sadness as their flagship Sea Bright restaurant, McLoone's Rum Runner, was demolished. The eatery and nightclub opened in 1987 and hosted musical performances from everyone from McLoone's own bands to Bobby Bandiera and Bruce Springsteen.

McLoone has vowed to rebuild and elevate the structure, which lost its waterfront dock on the Shrewsbury River and was flooded with five feet of water. Initially he hoped to be open by spring 2015 but he said last week that date was too optimistic.

"We're going up to 13 feet," McLoone said. "We're about to start pile-driving." As for the grand opening?

"We hope to get a piece of next summer," McLoone said.

Further south in Sea Bright, Donovan's Reef, the beachfront bar with the laid-back, oceanfront vibe, remains a memory. Opened in 1976 and named for a John Wayne movie, Donovan's was destroyed by Sandy, which smashed its main building and Tiki bar, leaving little standing but its roadside sign.

A local hangout that has also hosted luminaries like Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi, Donovan's received permission to rebuild earlier this year. The new Donovan's will be an elevated structure, raised 17-feet high so it will be even with the sea wall and have unobstructed views of the ocean.

Construction of the building has not yet started.

Further south, the fate of Joey Harrison's Surf Club in Ortley Beach remains unclear.

The oceanfront nightclub, which had its own beach, was a favorite of locals and tourists alike, drawing large crowds for dance and teen nights as well as performances by artists like Dick Dale, The Saw Doctors and Sublime.

A staple on the oceanfront since it opened in 1973, the popular night spot was ripped apart by the storm, with waves gouging large chunks out of the building. Owner Joey Barcellona has vowed to rebuild the Surf Club, which had survived dozens of storms before Sandy.

But a long-simmering dispute with the Surf Club's insurance company, Executive Risk Specialty Insurance Company, led to a beachfront protest in June, and a lawsuit filed against the insurance company in Ocean County Superior Court. The building suffered more than $1 million damage from the storm. The lawsuit is still pending.

BEFORE SANDY:  Bob Muroff, owner of the Long Beach Island Trailer Park  in Holgate,  stands in front of trailer homes there. The park was rebuilt after the March 1962 nor’easter.
AFTER SANDY: The Long Beach Island Trailer Park will not be rebuilt from the rubble following superstorm Sandy, Muroff told residents last year.

In mid-September, a post on the Surf Club's official Facebook page said, "Sorry folks, no news yet on a rebuild. When news becomes available, good or bad, we will share it." The damaged building remains, dilapidated and fenced off to prevent the public from getting too close. Badly battered by the storm, Ortley Beach is gradually rebuilding, but the remains of the Surf Club are a sad reminder of Sandy's fury.

"When will the surf club start rebuilding? Ortley will never be the same without it," Franklin Lakes resident Chris Boel asked.

Reinhart, the Monmouth University professor, said that while some iconic landmarks may never return, new ones will eventually take their place. The Jersey Shore remains resilient, he said.

"..The allure of the Jersey Shore, it's sounds, sights, and smells — will continue to draw visitors and summer residents," he said. "So, while the memories will remain, new ones will be created with the new structures."

Jean Mikle: (732) 643-4050, jmikle@app.com