Popular wedding venue faces backlash for recent renovations to ballroom

A popular wedding venue in Morris County is receiving backlash for some major renovations the venue recently underwent.

News 12 Staff

Dec 21, 2022, 3:34 AM

Updated 655 days ago

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A popular wedding venue in Morris County is receiving backlash for some major renovations the venue recently underwent.
The Madison Hotel in Morristown announced on social media that it has been completely renovated – much to the surprise of some soon-to-be brides who booked their weddings there. Many had already signed contracts and put down tens of thousands of dollars in deposits before learning about the news.
“The initial down payment had to be within two or three days. It was for $6,000,” one bride-to-be told News 12 New Jersey.
The couples, who are now forced to either adapt to the new renovations or pour more money into changing the decor they initially picked with their vendors, are hoping to be compensated for the change. They asked News 12 to withhold their names as they fear retribution from the venue.
“I just see this post from the Madison Hotel. It says, ‘exciting news,’” one bride-to-be said. “My initial reaction was this has to be a joke. You've got to be kidding me. This is not the ballroom that I toured two weeks ago. This is not what I saw and not what I wanted. I was absolutely shocked."
Another bride-to-be told News 12, "I do plan on keeping my wedding there. I do not have the budget to switch. I’m mostly upset about being kept in the dark on this. I never expected to have to ‘get used’ to my wedding ballroom.”
But some say that a wedding venue should be entitled to do whatever renovations it wishes, whenever the owners would like to do them.
Wedding consultant Erik Kent, co-publisher of NJWedding.com, says that New Jersey’s wedding industry is a competitive one.
“When venues are in the marketplace, there are being compared to other venues that couples are going to see. NYC for example, there are certain things that people want to see. When you come to New Jersey, perhaps there's a venue that could match that. Get that modern feel a couple was looking for,” Kent says.
Upper management at the Madison Hotel claims that they informed guests within 48 hours of posting the announcement.
The Madison Hotel was just named "Best Wedding Venue in Morris County" by the Morris-Essex Health/Life Magazine.