37 Atlantic Avenue: Winner of a Homeowner Beersheba Award. Photo by Paul Goldfinger. Click left for larger view; then back arrow.

By Paul Goldfinger

Michelangelo Cappabianca (“all A’s”) and Tom Nero are from Short Hills, New Jersey, but before they purchased their Ocean Grove get-away home, they had been vacationing in Belmar and Asbury Park for many years. However, in 2003, when they decided to buy a “beach house,” those two communities did not seem to be quite right. They wanted a quiet, beautiful second home where they could relax year round.

They came into the Grove to see what they could find, and they saw the c. 1870 house at 37 Atlantic Avenue, sitting on the corner opposite Founder’s Park. It needed a lot of work, but they looked around and said, “It’s heaven.” It is  a small place with porches all around and up and down. They saw the beautiful park, and to the right, was Wesley Lake. The most important element that captured their imagination was “the location.” They knew very little about the town, however they didn’t need to know.  This was “it.”   The house was under contract, but they would not be denied — they would pay whatever was necessary.

According to the Historical Society/HPC presentation at the Beersheba Awards ceremony, “37 Atlantic is a standout: an essentially intact, nineteenth-century cottage.” *  When the reconstruction began, the goal was to preserve as much of the original components as possible. The result was a “true restoration of this gem, carried out beautifully by the Sullivan Brothers.”*

The HSOG description said, “Remarkably, the original porch structure and decoration remain….every single piece of this delicate ensemble was painstakingly removed, restored , and reassembled.”*

Jim Sullivan  told us that the porch was a complicated and difficult job. Just the craftsmanship required to save the 120 decorative vertical “panels” necessitated a “massive” amount of time to do the dipping, stripping, sanding, priming and painting.

There were many other elements and obstacles, but in the end “this meticulous restoration puts the spotlight on a typical—though now rare—example of Ocean Grove’s early vernacular architecture.”*

As far as Michel and Tom are concerned, they couldn’t be happier. They love to sit on the porches facing the park, catch the breezes, and enjoy the people happening by. When they want exciting fun, they go to Asbury Park, but they also enjoy the events in the Grove such as the Great Auditorium Saturday night shows.

Their wish is to see the historic fountain in the park restored. A fund has already been set up by the HSOG, but these two homeowners plan to organize a spectacular fundraiser to give the project a boost—details to be announced.

* Many thanks to Jenny Shaffer of the HPC/HSOG for her quotes above. She presented the Homeowner Award to the owners of this very special historic house.