Cross the causeway into tony Stone Harbor this summer and you’ll catch an eyeful of the Shore’s new boutique hotel, the Reeds at Shelter Haven. It’s been a long time coming. The Reeds (reedsatshelterhaven.com) sprouted on a lot 2-½ blocks from the beach that has been vacant since the demolition in 1999 of the Shelter Haven Motel.
The developers, 100th Street LLC of Stone Harbor, made several proposals for the site but were limited in height by Stone Harbor’s zoning restrictions. After waiting out the recession, the owners got the project back on track with a scaled-down boutique concept. They broke ground for the new three-story hotel over Memorial Day weekend 2012.
“After a long, long time of planning and hoping, our timing is perfect,” says Reeds managing director Ron Gorodesky, who also is president of Restaurant Advisory Services, a Pennsylvania-based consultancy. “We feel this is the type of property that Stone Harbor has really been looking for.”
Due to open June 20, the hotel at 96th Street and Third Avenue has 37 rooms and suites, many with views of Shelter Haven, Stone Harbor’s little bay off Hereford Inlet. Nightly rates range from $369 to $669 in season.
The rooms, some with balconies, feature a clean, coastal-inspired look, with muted colors and oak floors.
The Reeds is opening with two casual restaurants. Water Star Grille is a 175-seat restaurant with outdoor deck seating and an emphasis on local produce and fresh seafood. The 64-seat indoor restaurant, Sax at the Reeds, intends to deliver a more intimate dining experience. A third restaurant, CatTails at the Reeds, is proposed for the future on a property across Third Avenue, where a series of restaurants have operated in recent summers.
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