Bill Clinton at Casino in the Park on Nov. 2, 2005, with Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise, Jerramiah Healy, Jon Corzine and Rep. Albio Sires behind him. (Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal)

By Terrence T. McDonald | The Jersey Journal

JERSEY CITY — After decades running the Casino in the Park banquet hall, Kathy Sweeney can't settle on her favorite moment.

It could be meeting Muhammad Ali, who came there in the 1970s and attracted so many fans they “pushed in the doors to get to see him,” Sweeney said.

Or maybe it’s Bill Clinton — who visited in 2005 to raise campaign cash for Jon Corzine — stopping to autograph a report on his home state of Arkansas that Sweeney’s granddaughter wrote for a school assignment.

Then there’s the night in 1989 when mayoral hopefuls Gerry McCann and Glenn D. Cunningham hosted competing fundraisers at Casino in the Park and the two met up for an awkward moment on their way into the men’s room (one veered off to avoid spending time with the other).

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Sweeney, left, chats with her friend, Joyce Adams. (Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal)

Whatever Sweeney remembers most fondly, memories may soon be all she has of the banquet hall her family has run for nearly 60 years. The Sweeneys' lease on the Hudson County-owned property is expiring and the county plans to seek bidders interested in taking it over. On Dec. 21, Sweeney hosted what could be her last party there, the Jersey City Rotary Club's holiday dinner.

“I’m feeling very sad,” Sweeney, 76, told The Jersey Journal before the bash. “I got so involved with all the customers. They’re all like my friends and my family.”

The rotary club has met at Casino for its weekly lunch meetings for about 40 years. Its president, Jennifer Aitken, said the group is sad to see the tradition end.

"We have booked another venue for January, so that was a little traumatic for us," she said.

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The front page of The Jersey Journal on Oct. 13, 1950, the day after Casino in the Park opened.

Casino in the Park opened Oct. 12, 1950 and was an instant hit with the city’s swanky set.

A banquet hall and restaurant, it was regularly featured in the society pages of The Jersey Journal, which would mention when Mr. and Mrs. Manton Graff dined there with friends from out of town or when the Colony Club of North Hudson rented one of its rooms for a luncheon-bridge. Frank Sinatra hosted a 50th wedding anniversary party for his parents there.

Sweeney's now-husband, Bernie, assumed management in 1961 and Sweeney took over about 30 years ago.

Everyone in Jersey City has worked at Casino in the Park, Sweeney claims.

"Half the firefighters, half the cops and maybe 50 attorneys," she said.

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Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal

Sweeney has overseen thousands of banquets, political bashes, repasts and weddings, all logged in an 18-inch-long green appointment book (she does not like computers). She said she’s met every New Jersey governor in recent memory, including Phil Murphy, who will succeed Gov. Chris Christie in January.

Murphy seemed nervous to speak to a crowd the night she met him, Sweeney said, despite his double-digit poll advantage.

“I told him, what’s wrong with you, you know you’ll be governor,” Sweeney said.

A brash redhead with an Irish brogue, Sweeney is known for saying precisely what’s on her mind, a trait that often leads to head-shaking from her son (and co-worker), Jay. At one point she referred to two local politicians as “crooked” and another as “highfalutin.” A loyal Democrat, she tries not to use President Trump’s name. She calls him “Donald Duck."

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A painting of Bernie and Kathy Sweeney honoring the time Kathy was named Irishwoman of the Year. (Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal)

Rich Boggiano, the Ward C councilman, and his wife, Mary, held their wedding reception in 1974 at Casino in the Park. The Sweeneys will be missed, he said.

“I think it's probably one of the last really nice places we have left in Jersey City,” Boggiano said. “To see it close is a shame."

The banquet hall will remain open, even if the Sweeneys no longer run it. The county is expected to seek new managers next year and it is looking for someone to spend millions renovating the building. Some in the county want something a little more modern than the 67-year-old banquet hall, where a Christmas tree sits in one corner year round. The Sweeneys say they may submit a bid.

The county told the Sweeneys they can stay until April. Kathy Sweeney said they may use that time to pack everything up (including the sconces she said they bought "at cost" years ago after Trump ordered them from a vendor and never paid the bill).

So much of the banquet hall's business depends on parties planned well in advance, Sweeney said, she doesn’t expect another one before they vacate.

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Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal

Stephen Dnistrian's late mother, Rosie, worked at Casino in the Park for 40 years. Dnistrian, who lives in Colts Neck, was in Jersey City on Dec. 21 and drove through Lincoln Park to see if the Casino’s lights were on.

He had heard about the Sweeneys’ potential exit but did not know that was the night of their last scheduled party. He couldn’t help but think about his mom as soon as he entered the doors, he said.

“It’s extremely emotional,” said Dnistrian, 53. “She came here penniless from Ireland and found her home in this place.”

For Kathy Sweeney, the end of her time at Casino in the Park means one thing: rest.

"I've worked since I was 12 years old. Time to take a break," she said.

SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM CASINO IN THE PARK'S LAST PARTY

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Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.