Is this the beginning of the end for the old Inn of the Dove on the Black Horse Pike in Egg Harbor Township?

I ask because as of Thursday morning, a large piece of construction (or deconstruction, depending on how you look at it) equipment appeared behind the fence at the old hotel.

While I haven't seen an official announcement from anyone, I think it's pretty safe to say that the old inn is probably beyond repair and if anyone thought that could still be a successful business, it wouldn't have gotten to the condition it's in now.

The Inn of the Dove, when it opened well over three decades ago, was a place that you and your significant other could go to for a special night together. However, as time went on, it seemed to become a place where you could take your insignificant other to spend some, well, let's just say some quick time together (The Press of Atlantic City called it a "cheater’s hideaway" and others a "lovers getaway").

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Over the years, the property deteriorated to a point where cops were there nearly once a week, on average. In February 2018, township officials forced the motel to close, mainly due to a faulty fire alarm system, which left nearly two dozen people who were living there at the time homeless.

Early last year, The Press of Atlantic City reported the property was sold to a group in Cape May County for $325,000. But even with new owners, that plot of land, which was assessed at over a million dollars not too long ago, has remained vacant, vandalized, and overgrown.

Oh -- and fun fact: the Inn of the Dove's website from around 2012 is still up and running if you want to see what the rooms used to look like. Then, their Honeymoon Suite was going for as much as $499/night and it featured, "mirrors around the Jacuzzi and above the bed," complimentary chips (nothing screams romance like a one-ounce bag of sour cream and onion potato chips), and, "French shades of light with disco ball" (any world traveler will tell you that the mark of a quality hotel is the disco ball in your room). And the reviews on TripAdvisor from years ago are pretty entertaining, too.

Inn of the Dove at 6665 Black Horse Pike in Egg Harbor Township NJ - Photo: Chris Coleman
Inn of the Dove at 6665 Black Horse Pike in Egg Harbor Township NJ - Photo: Chris Coleman
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Anyway, if you know what's happening there, please drop me an e-mail!

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