It will be a stormy scene at the venerable Yale Club in Manhattan on Wednesday because tradition-loving members are up in arms about “declining dress standards.”
The storied Ivy League private members club, housed in a 22-story neoclassical clubhouse near Grand Central Terminal, is holding its annual meeting. But members are complaining about a failure in enforcing the dress code, which insists on “business casual” and that “neat, respectful appearance is required at all times.”
One member wrote in a letter to the club, “A horrifying example of this denouement, this sad decline in the atmosphere and spirit of the club, occurred on September 5 in the men’s locker room. A young man (a Yale law student) was wearing a tee shirt emblazoned in large letters with: ‘F - - k Forever.’ I was shocked and told him that it was offensive and inappropriate; that this was a club for ladies and gentlemen. He smirked. Why was he allowed through the front door? Why did those on duty at the desk at the locker room allow him to enter? Why was he allowed to walk around the club dressed as such? Is there no decency at the club anymore, no class? Will the management be held accountable (and members)?”
The member also states that security is lax and “anyone who wishes may enter the club,” adding that Marvin Berenblum, CEO of National Executive Service Corps, recently had his briefcase stolen in the lounge by “two young, slovenly dressed teenagers in dirty cutoff jeans. Why were they let in downstairs?”
Other members have complained that the club’s famed lounge is often booked for private functions, such as weddings, while the roof dining room is also unavailable for many months of the year. Yale Club spokeswoman Jennifer Warpool was not available for comment Tuesday night.