#4 Boardwalk (the White Whale) Blogfinger photo, 2016,
I have heard that the “White Whale” (aka Dunes”, aka #4 Boardwalk, aka block 101, lot #6) is up for sale. Do you have any information?
Thanks, Rudy.
Editor’s note: That 2 story building was used last summer as a food court downstairs. Days, Asbury Park branch, moved there, so now they have two OG locations. Historically they had one in OG and one in AP.
There is a real estate listing on the Net currently that says the building is for sale or lease. The owner is not mentioned.
www.loopnet.com/Listing/4-Boardwalk-Ocean-Grove-NJ/9638113/
The listing describes it as a 33,540 square feet space with two floors, the second of which is suitable for a restaurant, office or retail. The office on the second floor is 11,000 square feet.
The sale price is $8.25 million.
They say that it was built in 1990, but the site’s history goes back much farther.
The White Whale building has attracted some concerns. Here is a link to our post on this building from 2015 which contains a great deal of background information.
And read the current comments for more revelations.
2015 BF article on White Whale
By Paul Goldfinger, Editor @blogfinger
MUGSY SPANIER
The plot thickens. A review of Blogfinger archives reveals that in 2011, the Dorian’s Restaurant , in the White Whale building, was badly damaged by Hurricane Irene. The owner, Robert Dweck, promised timely repairs, but there was some skepticism expressed in the BF comments section. Charles Layton wrote the article.
I now recall that the White Whale was privately owned, apart from the rest of the North End property, and now we know who it is–the same owner as in 2011.
https://blogfinger.net/2011/09/22/the-north-end-today-hurricane-irene-made-a-wreck-of-former-og-boardwalk-restaurant-owner-it-will-be-fixed/
So there is that name Dweck again. The White Whale’s Dweck is Robert.
David Dweck’s name came up during the investigation into the owner of the Warrington site—Flatiron Real Estate. Are they related? It seems like too much of a coincidence.
After Sandy, you could get a peak at the inside of that rickety structure. Inside, it looks like a children’s tree house. And you can now see how weak the building actually is. Sagging here, sagging there. No historical value, just a cheap beach house; torn down for the better.
The leaseholder of record is MAPLEWOOD-OCEAN GROVE ASSOC INC, according to Monmouth County property records. Robert Dweck is listed as president of the firm. Their address is a post office box in Ocean Grove. Taxes are $32,277 for 2017, and the 2018 assessment is $1,258,200 (down from $1,450,000 in 2017). The real estate agent said the ground rent is about $1200 per year. Last sale was in 1992 for $350,000. The entire property is, of course, in a flood zone.
We are trying to ID the owner. The Maplewood Group is D & K Stores, Inc. They are listed as a privately held company at #4 Boardwalk in Ocean Grove, NJ. Another name would be the Dollar Stores.
The side being used for the food court is actually quite nice and refinished. There are active kitchens in there with modern fire suppression systems. So at least that part of the building is updated
Kevin Chambers – Thank you for your fortitude.
One of the issues that was emphasized in our 2015 article on this subject was about the fact that the White Whale is landlocked. It sits on the boardwalk, which is not a street. That is just one of a number of issues (check the 2015 link) regarding zoning related to the White Whale which we found to be possibly illegal.
And if that conclusion holds up, then the sale of that property is also suspicious.
Jack: There’s nobody there now to hear the alarm. But it certainly is a worrisome situation. Who knows when the feds might swoop in to investigate the whole zoning manipulation at the North End.
With that price tag, guess which building is next to go up in smoke.
I wonder how much it is insured for. It’s hard to imagine that that crummy structure is worth very much.
That building had an accessory use when the North End Hotel was alive, but after the hotel ceased to function,the White Whale’s continued use was illegal. It was illegal for Bernie Haney to subdivide and create a separate lot for it. It is part of the entire North End property
Currently the land under it is owned by the CMA, and whoever owns the leasehold and the building is the one who is trying to sell it at the ridiculous price of $8.25 million.
Just wondering, are the smoke detectors working?
It;s a junky building, with a guy who sells cheap China beach junk. It should be torn down. No historical significance can be attributed to this property. Sandy revealed it to be a crass wooden structure with no real bones. it blocks breezes, and should not have been there in the first place. Good riddance to bad rubbish.