An Atlantic City motel that has seen a drug raid, two fires and an alligator in the swimming pool is finally set for demolition thanks to a partnership between the city and the CRDA.
The Casino Reinvestment and Development Authority Board of Directors authorized funds for the demolition of the Bayview Inn and Suites at its April meeting.
While the motel just off Exit 2 of the Atlantic City Expressway is outside the Tourism District, it is one of the first views for some visitors coming into the city.
“I am happy to see a partnership between the city of Atlantic City and the (CRDA),” Mayor Frank Gilliam said in a news release announcing the demolition. “Our city can only benefit from both entities working together for the betterment of Atlantic City and its residents.”
The Bayview long ago fell into disrepair, but its problems began piling up last August, when 33 people, seven dogs and an alligator were displaced after a drug raid Aug. 15.
What started out as a quirky story of a 3-foot-long alligator being fished out of a motel pool, turned into a story of drugs and death.
The shuttered building then was the scene of two fires, with at least one categorized as suspicious.
In August, BreakingAC traced owner Randhir “Randy” Maisura’s troubling path as a motel owner.
The city found tracking him down — and getting him to comply — equally troubling.
In November, there was the promise of a new owner who talked of having the place fixed and opened by Memorial Day weekend, now just 10 days away.
That never materialized.
Now, the site is set to be razed.
The announcement did not include an amount.
In December, a resolution set it at $300,000. But the City Council vote was meant to protect the city rather than set money to be spent, Licensing and Inspection Director Dale Finch explained at the time.
“Without a special assessment, he would receive the money and walk away,” Finch told. “This enables us, if we have to tear it down and if there are proceeds from fire claims, we will get the proceeds.”
A date was not given for the motel’s demolition.
The nuisance property has generated at least three police or fire calls for illegal and/or dangerous activities, placing an undue burden on the taxpayers of Atlantic City, the release said.
