Where to stay when you leave.
Round 1 of The People of Montauk vs. The Surf Lodge
7/08/2008 at 1:19 PM
Tags: Montauk Hotels, Hampton Hotels, Hotel Wars, Jamie Mulholland
It's the classic case of David and Goliath, reincarnated in the town of Montauk and The Surf Lodge. An article in this weekend's New York Times details how the "proudly low-key" town where "middle-class families could afford hotel rooms," is fighting the Manhattanization of its streets and shores. And it's almost as nasty as Christie Brinkley's divorce case.
Every chance it gets, Montauk has attempted to knock The Surf Lodge down a notch, the Times says, issuing a violation for putting up an outdoor movie screen without a permit, putting its hair salon and clothing boutique on notice for not being allowed under its building permit and erecting no-parking signs in the area.
One Surf Lodge owner, Jamie Mulholland, calls the issues "minor growing pains," but if the Times' lede is any indication of Surf Lodge's clientele, it's no wonder Montauk locals can't stand the place:
Lauren Morris's gold lamé high heels kept getting stuck between the planks of the patio deck.
A male friend who shares her rental house in Southampton had warned her on a recent Saturday night to wear flats to Surf Lodge ... But she was not the type of woman to have packed party shoes without heels.
Montauk is putting up a good fight, but we wonder whether it's a battle worth fighting for two reasons:
First, you can't fight hoteliers who are determined to be the hot spot. Second, if business continues as it has (need we remind you of bouts of food poisoning and unanswered reservations lines?), perhaps the Surf Lodge will simply self-combust.
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