NJ's Former Playboy Club Sold, Site To Become Condos And Resort: Mayor

VERNON, NJ — A development company is planning to breathe new life into the former Playboy Club Hotel site in Sussex County, which has sat vacant for years.

Vernon Mayor Anthony Rossi announced last week that the property was sold to an affiliate of Lockwood Hotels, which has hotels in several other states. The developer is calling the new venture Great Gorge Resort, and it will feature hotel rooms, condos, a "Super Spa," and a venue for musical acts.

There are about 674 rooms available in the hotel, according to Lockwood.

This 640,000-square-foot building on Route 517 first opened in the 1970s as The Great Gorge Playboy Club. Since 2016, a golf course on the property has been operating under the Great Gorge name.

The eight-story hotel building was only under the Playboy name for about 10 years before it began switching hands, and was sold multiple times. It was most recently the Legends Resort and Country Club, which closed in 2018.

Rossi and Lockwood Hotels did not disclose exact details of the sale, but the mayor did say that the buyer is working to pay tax debts still owed on the property (which the township cannot waive).

Lockwood is currently working on a hotel in Reading, Pa. and manages other properties in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Tennessee under various brands, including Homewood Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn, and Vitality Hotel.