Whitfield Hotel. Blogfinger file photo c. 2013. ©
It was in the summer of 2013 that a hearing was held by the HPC to decide about demolishing a wreck of an unsavory 130 year old hotel in Ocean Grove. The Whitfield sits on 4 lots at the intersections of Surf, Beach and Bath Avenues. Testimony about the Whitfield Hotel, a 54 room residential facility, revealed that all criteria for demolition were met. In addition, experts testified that the property had no historic significance. After that hearing, Code Enforcement issued a demolition permit. We wrote a detailed article about the history of the Whitfield and about that hearing (see link below).
http://blogfinger.net/2013/08/30/the-hotel-whitfield-a-nightmare/
The neighbors were ecstatic to hear that the hotel would be torn down, hopefully to make way for four single family homes. Many called it a “seedy flea bag.” It was said to be a place where people who had criminal records lived. Social agencies often sent offenders of various types to stay there for short periods, but sometimes those characters were sent back again and again. The police were often called to the location.
The HPC hearing dealt with the demolition application, but it was not going to get involved with the fate of the tenants. Some Blogfinger readers expressed concern about that. There are 37 comments there, and they make very interesting reading. Here are two:
Doubting Thomas said, “It is sad because of what it represents. Every derelict building represents the lives of people, and we should view tear-downs (as with the Sampler) from that perspective.
“And speaking of that perspective, where was the Home Owners Association special committee on derelict housing? Why weren’t they there offering an opinion? What exactly do they do besides not showing up for a demolition hearing?”
Wisher said, “Most, I love the move-ahead, clear, and most-certainly Germanic tone of this post. It is as though no humans lived in the structure, and it is an abstract real estate construct. Maybe that is appropriate for New Jersey – dead communities. Spring Lake – dead, Deal – dead. Ocean Grove?”
After the Code Enforcement awarded the demolition permit, the tenants received assistance to find comparable affordable housing. NJ law requires that tenants be given 18 months eviction notice, and that was done in March 2014.
So the demolition of the Whitfield cannot be implemented until at least September, 2015; however the end is in sight. After that, the owner will be able to develop the property, but condominiums will not be permitted. Evidently only single family homes will be allowed to replace the Whitfield Hotel.
When that happens, the neighbors ought to have a block party, because their home values and quality of life should go up.
We hate to see authentic historic buildings torn down, but sometimes it is necessary, and Ocean Grove has lost many such buildings over the years due to fire and/or neglect. The idea is to solve the problem of derelict and deteriorating historic houses in town. It is an uphill battle, but one that requires a team approach by those who care in Ocean Grove.
LOUDON WAINWRIGHT III (from Boardwalk Empire)
Thank you View. Do we have any idea how many long term residents still need to be relocated? From what I understand many have moved on to other housing.
New Kid in Town: Yes, different rules apply to different residents. The Whitfield has rooms and apartments. The apartments fall under the 18 month rule. By law, the rooms can be rented for only 30 continuous days at a time to the same resident, hence no eviction issues as only short term stays are permitted.
As I understand, the demolition permit is only valid for two years and will expire at the end of 2015. At that time, it would need to be approved again. My question is why individuals are still moving in? New faces are seen coming in all the time. Do different rules apply to different types of residents? I would hope that the 18 month eviction notice regulation would not apply to newcomers. What is known for sure is that 4 Victorian style homes have already been approved by HPC. Thank you Paul for giving us an update.
There was a time when Ocean Grove went to war against boarding houses that were sending a small army of mental patients and other unfortunates out onto the streets of OG to sleep on the benches and wander the town. Herb Herbst and his HOA strong men saved the town that way by caring about those people and the future of the town.
Boarding houses are part of OG’s history—there were so many of them and hotels back in the day. But I doubt that 21st century OG will take pride in those kinds of places. The re-creation of a North End hotel may have some historic resonance, but it’s not likely to appeal to the majority of modern-day Grovers. We should be able to keep our historic designation while fighting more condos, boarding houses and hotels. A small town with beautifully restored Victorian homes is what needs to happen. —–Paul @Blogfinger
This is awesome. All of these old boarding houses (and multi-family houses) have to go. OG is not some sort of socialist humanitarian engineering project where we have to accommodate people who cannot afford to live here. Let’s move on to having only single family homes! To some that sounds harsh, but really, isn’t OG a much better place without this cohort?
Surf Girl: the article says, “The demolition of the Whitfield cannot be implemented until at least September, 2015…” I have no more details regarding the date of demolition.I suspect the exact date is unknown at this time—-Paul
Are we sure that this is happening in September or is this just a target date? Is there a way of knowing or do we wait until we see demo trucks show up? There has been no mention of the Whitfield in recent meetings.
Editor’s note: What “meetings” are you referring to where you seek such information? The exact date is probably under control of the developer.
Thanks for sharing the update, or should I say backdate (from your 2014 article). Four single family homes would reflect the current zoning and greatly reduce the density of the area. Kudo’s to NJ for providing 18 months as well as relocation funds for those displaced.