I recently walked (and biked the final mile or so) of the Rockaway peninsula boardwalk. Like a wraith, the former Hotel Del Mar appears at the west end of the boardwalk, officially called Ocean Promenade, at Beach 125th Street. The boardwalk itself goes on and on, all the way out to Beach 9th Street in Far Rockaway. The hotel is the lone Hurricane Sandy ruin remaining; the boardwalk itself was rebuilt and reopened 4 years after the superstorm, which chopped the former boardwalk into chunks and splinters, leaving parts of it on the streets of Belle Harbor, Hammels and other neighborhoods.
The Del Mar was one of many seaside hotels built along the water in the early 20th century as Rockaway Playland was built and residential developments began to march west in Rockaway Park, Belle Harbor and Neponsit.
The Hotel Del Mar, which opened in 1930, occupied the seaside mansion built in 1912 by Edward and Josephine Hickie Wren on Triton Ave., an early name for Ocean Promenade. An above-ground basement and a wraparound porch that accepted the breeze no matter which direction provided adequate to excellent cooling on hotter days before the days of air conditioning. A small rooftop observatory was provided to view the stars, planets and moon in the era before blaring and glaring sodium lighting rendered them nearly invisible. Edward Wren, born in Ireland, was a successful department store entrepreneur, known in the era as a “merchant prince.” He and his family sought a seaside dwelling in the early-20th century as he’d contracted Bright’s disease, a disorder of the kidneys, and fresh air was a major component of therapy then.
After Edward Wren died in 1917, the home was sold to new investors who turned it into the Del Mar, which for several decades was among the most popular resorts on the peninsula, hosting myriad weddings and bar mitzvahs. The Del Mar’s final incarnation was as the Chai Home for Adults.
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10/23/18
6 comments
It’s a shame that an historic building like that has been left there to rot. However, with it’s present condition being a nuisance and an eyesore, The City of New York’s Building and Safety Department really needs to take more action to get the property owners to take action or the city should take condemnation proceedings against the property owner.
Love your site. Since you are writing about a Hotel in Belle Harbor, you should write about the former Washington Hotel which existed until a few (maybe few x 2 years ago).
Google Street View shows the Del Mar a couple of months before the storm. Even then it looked abandoned and in rather skanky condition.
I remember that. We used to stay at the Washington Hotel at Rockaway Beach Boulevard and B 125 St. We’d walk down to the beach there.
Later, my grandparents lived at 154 B 124 st.
Also, my parents were married at the Park Manor at B116 St on the boardwalk.
Many happy times in Belle Harbor.
Joel Fred The Washington hotel has been gone for many more than two years LOL. Somewhere between 10 and 12. I worked there only one night and then quit because I worked for such a cheap unkind people who owned and ran the place..
Would be great if they could rehabilitate this beautiful building