N E W S A P R I L 4 L E H A V R E Le History of “Le Club” Have a seat and relax! Logan O’Connor at work behind the counter of the café Clubhouse Manager Nick Santo greets you with a smile BY JILL DAVIS Today, the Clubhouse at Le Havre boasts a beautiful gathering room with great views of the pool and bay, along with a fitness center and a fullservice café. But it wasn’t always so upscale—in fact, it didn’t always exist. Rewind to the 1950’s when Le Havre was built. Back then it was a rental community called Levitt House, having been built by the developers of Levittown, and the old Hammerstein mansion and adjacent land was part of the original Levitt House property. The mansion housed a club (some people may remember Ripples on the Water) with an inground pool, basketball court and tennis court. In winter, the tennis court was transformed into a skating rink and, though it may be hard to believe now, all of those amenities were included in residents’ monthly rents. Fast forward to the 1980’s, when the property was converted from rentals to co-ops. “The sponsor didn’t sell the Hammerstein land to the co-op,” explained LeHavre Board President Stanley Greenberg, who has lived here since 1972. The co-op, which was renamed Le Havre, had no clubhouse. “In 1984,” Stanley continued, “the clubhouse was a storage house.” The Clubhouse has certainly come a long way from those humble beginnings but, the road to it becoming the welcoming place it is today, was a bumpy one. About 17 years ago, the structure was spiffed up, and basic gym equipment— a bench press—was added. Approximately a year later, Le Havre invested upwards of $50,000 to rebuild the space, which included its first real gym, complete with Cybex equipment. The celebration was shortlived, however: About 3 months later, the building was severely damaged by a major flood. Undaunted, reparations were made…and then the Clubhouse was hit with yet another flood 10 years ago. At that point, new drains were added to compensate for the low-lying area that is prone to flooding. “We have had no 4 LEHAVRE COURIER | APRIL 2016 | WWW.QNS.COM floods since then,” Stanley explained, “not even during Hurricane Sandy.” Since then, the gym has been significantly expanded. Board member Steve Young elaborated, “It’s one of the cleanest, most well-taken care of gyms around. It has an aerobics room, free weights, weight machines for legs and a punching bag.” Lori Rietwyk, a lifelong LeHavre resident, is one of the aerobics instructors at the gym. She’s been teaching the classes for more than ten years, and the classes are very popular. “Most of the classes are full,” Lori reported, “and we get a lot of regulars.” Stanley explained that the improvements weren’t limited to the gym. The Board and Management are always looking for ways to upgrade and refurbish the clubhouse. In recent years, the old carpeting was replaced with porcelain tiles, a new front desk was installed, the furniture was replaced and the lighting was upgraded. This is a perfect place for greeting visitors, running social events or just a relaxing place to sit and take in the beautiful view. The Clubhouse has also been home to several commissaries over the years. Logan’s Cafe, the current eatery, is arguably the most full-service café LeHavre has had and has been on-site for the past couple of years. Logan O’Connor, the owner, says there is a strong flow of customers throughout the day. “We have our regulars who come in the morning,” Logan said, “and almost always a big crowd after aerobics classes.” He went on to explain that the pool season is by far the busiest time of year, and so “we stay open 7 days a week during the summer.” Photos by Jill Davis
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