I should weigh in and I will. Any speculation that there was a master plan beyond acquiring the development rights to the 200 and 100 blocks of 4th ave is wrong. From the start, the whole idea behind buying the Fast Lane and Baronet, along with 3 other properties still in private hands, was for the sole purpose of aligning ourselves to buy the development rights from Asbury Partners for 4th ave along the Ocean. That the Partners demanded 17+million dollars per parcel with the Partners retaining 100% of all retail space built was and is the reason that only 3 sub-developers are working the waterfront. It is no coincidence that the three projects that are moving along nicely and looking good are leftover from Messrs. Carabretta and Vacarro should not surprise anyone.
Here is a quote from Dan...."A huge let down that people were sold on a crusade to Save the Baronet. I thought it was courageous of Pat et al to embark on it in the first place. But people, including myself, got hyped for apparently nothing. What ever happened to the letter from Fishman promising to save it? Will these be more demolitions" I have to clarify something. Pat had zero to do with the successful Save The Baronet "crusade". That was a grassroots movement that was the result of one phone call by me(to Pam Lamburton), and one email to my list I have been compiling since working The Wonder Bar 2 summers ago. The phone call and email was my response to being let down by the people that Pat and I both expected to run with the Baronet as a grand consolation prize to the ridiculous and failed Savoy Theatre pipe dream. So, all you who believe Pat bought any properties in the Zone to jack up the price and zero in on profit are way off. If we, and that is a collective we, if we who run these establishments in Asbury Park, especially on the waterfront felt we could make the rent, let alone a living, running these clubs and businesses, we would do so with zeal. I am sure that most readers have spent their fair share of hard earned cash in the Wonderbar, it's those long X-Pensive nights when no one shows up that kills the bottom line. It is the same thing at the theatre. We ran 2 dollar movies and other than the first few weeks, no one showed up. Dinner and a Movie, promoted in-house by a couple top restaurants, was the ultimate failure, no one showed up. But that is less than half the story. It is obvious to many of us that the WB, the Baronet, et al will do more than enough business given the opportunity. And we are being offered and given the opportunity to do just that. The letter Dan is referring to spurred our deal with the partners and thankfully, the NEW waterfront developer has been active in negotiations. It is my fervent belief that The Baronet will continue to run for many years; that the Baronet will be given it's fair shot a new and fruitful future. In the next few months The Baronet will have no less than 3 stage presentations, an orchestra, concerts and at the very least, partnering in 3 film festivals. The schedule for the fast lane is also filling up with shows that will appeal to everyone from teenagers to rockers to country music high steppers those into the NYC groove. Here is another quote, I think from "fred", you owe me a hand shake, Fred. "Are you thsat naive, Pat pulled off the same thing as Over my dead body Santanna did. It was a scam from the beginning. They used the Save Baronet People. Just like Dominic. They used traderdude also. They fill their pockets and the save the Baronet People look like asses." I believe that if last night the council would have voted;NO would have been the eminent domain answer on the 4th ave properties. I believe that Bruno and Lofreddo would have led the no votes. There was no scam and Dominic Santana deserved what he got; he was smart. Eventually, and rightfully, the unsafe firetrap that is the Pony will come tumbling down and a new and extreme Stone Pony will be built, all the while Dominic will be enjoying his pony bucks. . Here is to the fervent hope that the current owners of the license realize they have no idea how to operate a night club and allow someone else to take the reins of the Pony and run with it. I feel much the same about the fast lane, I pushed hard to have a pro operator run the place, but it fell on my lap. same as the baronet. The baronet also needs real operators, a team like those that built the Carlton Theater into the Count Basie would be nice, but for the time being, we have a solid handle on The Baronet and it will be a happening spot in the very near future. Hedwig is going to be big, get your tickets early!!!! I am not sure about the fats lane, it is so expensive to open it up and things like what happened at the deep make running a club a risky business. From the waves on the beach to the west side of Asbury Park, from Deal To Wesley Lake, I don't think that Asbury has looked as good as it does in 30 years. Many projects, 4 I am involved with, are all finishing at the same basic time. The new waterfront is being laid out, and the 2-way traffic on Ocean Ave rules out the return of the circuit. Ya' know it funny that after change upon change things are more or less the same, I'll bet that 2007 is not the 1st time cars have gone both ways on the original Ocean Avenue. Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsburyPark/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsburyPark/join (Yahoo! 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