AS an Inwood resident myself, I was happy to see the transformation of Dyckman Street west of Broadway, long overdue. Nice (although food could be better) restaurants popped up along the stretch across from the park, with a cool club scene right around the corner from my apartment. That, along with the dive bar on the corner and the diner still there, made for a perfect local match and alternative (or supplement) for going downtown or to Brooklyn to party. But I knew the day would come that the anticipated crowd would come, and bring their bullshit, and make it a chic ghetto. Well, that day came last year this month when the marina (where I enjoyed biking and checking out the Hudson and the Palisades from water level) re-opened as the new beachfront lounger La Marina. I knew when I took friends down there last summer and saw the crowds grow and become ever-so unruly and boisterous. And now the New York Times has something to say about it, as thus:
A Place to Be Seen (and Heard) in Upper Manhattan
Caleb Ferguson for The New York Times
On Saturday night at La Marina in Upper Manhattan, dancing on the beach starts early and can last late into the night. Large crowds come to party in the sand and to listen to D.J’.s and live bands.
By LISA W. FODERARO
Published: June 18, 2013
With the lights of the George Washington Bridge painting the Hudson River and a half-moon hanging over the Palisades, La Marina felt like the place to be last Saturday night. At the year-old restaurant in Fort Washington Park, at the end of Dyckman Street in Upper Manhattan, two D.J.’s, working opposite ends of the property, cranked up the volume. Patrons ordered bottles of liquor, starting at $130 for rum and rising to $12,000 for a methuselah of Champagne, equal to five bottles, to secure a table on the terrace. Dancers let loose on the “beach,” a sand-covered strip flanked with four-poster beds draped in flowing white fabric.
Caleb Ferguson for The New York Times
One group of friends held sparklers while drinking and dancing to light up the scene.
Caleb Ferguson for The New York Times
La Marina, a restaurant, bar and lounge in Upper Manhattan, features tables along the Hudson River with scenic views.
“The vibe is getting turned up,” Marc De Jesus, 27, a La Marina regular from the Bronx, said with a wide grin.
But that vibe has become a bit too much for many in the Inwood neighborhood, a residential area that has developed a lively night life in recent years. They complain that La Marina, a concession on city parkland initially billed as a restaurant-lounge, has evolved into a raucous outdoor nightclub, attracting the likes of Jay-Z and Leonardo DiCaprio. They say the hot spot snarls traffic for blocks, even backing cars up on the Henry Hudson Parkway; creates noise pollution; and regularly violates the terms of its license with the city’s parks department.
“The crowds are the worst part,” said Terrie Walters, 52, who lives a few blocks away. “People will drive there even if they live six blocks away. You want to pull up to the valet and be seen getting out of your S.U.V. It’s brought an element to the neighborhood that does not fit, and there’s gridlock beyond gridlock, with people fighting and cursing and cutting each other off.”
Residents had high hopes when La Marina opened, given its sublime perch on the Hudson and its enticing beach-resort architecture. The restaurant replaced a junk-filled marina that closed after the operator was charged with selling drugs, and that also drew complaints about noise and traffic. In response to the current criticism, one of the owners, Jerald Tenenbaum, said in a statement: “La Marina is no longer a drug den or a magnet for all varieties of crime, which it undeniably was eight years ago. It has brought a large degree of pride to the neighborhood.”
Angry residents have circulated a polished online presentation, put together anonymously, that lays bare the alleged violations of La Marina’s license agreement with the parks department, with photographs, Instagram messages and D.J. promotions as evidence. One D.J.’s tweet boasted of drawing 3,600 people to La Marina, while another’s claimed 6,000. The official capacity, according to the parks department, is 1,500.
In some cases, the complaints are out of date. The presentation notes that La Marina is supposed to be open only seasonally, but the parks department has amended its license, allowing it to operate year-round. Similarly, it can now stay open until 1 a.m. seven days a week; originally it was to close at 12:30 a.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and at 11 p.m. Sundays through Wednesdays. As for music, the city originally said that La Marina could amplify music only with prior approval, and never past 10 p.m. It has since softened that restriction, allowing amplification without special permission, but still only until 10.
On Saturday, however, the two D.J.s, one supplemented by two live drummers, played until 1 a.m., the music emanating from a series of high-powered speakers on elevated poles. Neighborhood residents said it was a common practice.
Even some New Jersey residents have complained in online forums that they are bothered by the noise. And while La Marina is separated from nearby apartment buildings by the Henry Hudson Parkway, as well as train tracks and parkland, some Inwood residents say they cannot escape the thump-thump of the bass. “La Marina has driven me and my wife insane, and we plan to move out of the neighborhood completely because of it,” said John Graziano, a playground designer.
For the city, the restaurant’s popularity has proved awkward. On the one hand, La Marina is already one of the parks department’s most successful concessions, yielding about $250,000 last year for the city’s general fund — and that was when it was open only part of the year.
But the noise and cars are a problem, the department acknowledges, although, it said, La Marina has worked to resolve the traffic problem. “The facility is experiencing growing pains as it tries to manage its remarkable success,” the department said in a statement. “Parks is in constant communication with the concessionaire, and we still have some work to do, balancing the facility’s practices with the needs of the neighborhood.”
On Saturday night, a pair of gleaming red Ferraris were prominently parked by the entrance, like high-priced lawn ornaments; one license plate read “CABAYO,” a version of the Spanish word for horse, while the other advised: “PLAYHRD.” Groups of women took self-portraits with their camera phones, and everywhere people were smoking hookahs.
Alcohol is supposed to be served to seated customers only, but hundreds of people were milling around indoors and out, drinks in hand. La Marina charges a cover for access to certain areas, like the beach, and also sells tickets to certain D.J.-led shows and live events, an apparent breach of its agreement with parks.
The owners of La Marina have lodged their own complaints, saying opponents’ strategies have not stopped with the anonymous presentation. “One of their more effective tactics is the misuse of New York City oversight bodies,” said Mr. Tenenbaum, who owns the establishment with Josh Rosen among others, charging that critics have made false reports about under-age drinking, drugs, violence and even food poisoning.
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