After iconic NJ hotel closure broke hearts, here’s the new plan

It was a story that hit people hard. A gleaming legendary hotel whose 22 stories reached for the sky almost in defiance of the expectations that came with the small town where it stood.

People recognized it who had never been to it just from driving by it on a highway. It loomed that large.

The Sheraton Mahwah Hotel just near the New York border opened in 1986 in the Reagan era. There was a lounge there in the '80s that might as well have been Studio 54 in the '70s for how popular it was.

Our own Bob Williams worked as a disc jockey there, and could tell you firsthand how insane the place got.

It’s been closed since last December. Plans for redevelopment were just recently approved by township officials. The entire development will be no larger than 4 million square feet but the ground floor area will be limited to 800,000 square feet.

Warehouses, often the bane of some towns in New Jersey, look to be part of the mix. A data center and parking garages also seem to be in play.

There’s not been an actual site plan drafted yet so it’s unknown exactly what this development will look like, but Mahwah Mayor Jim Wysocki says, “The fact that they’re willing to work with the township and our residents by cutting the ground coverage is very important.”

One thing is for sure, whatever this property turns into it’s not going to have a hot, thumping pulse on Saturday nights like it used.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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