A new North End Redevelopment Plan was announced at last night’s Neptune Township Committee meeting. The initial part of that meeting was a work shop session which had the NERP on its agenda.
Committeeman Randy Bishop reported that the redeveloper WAVE had a new plan prepared for the North End by Shore Point, an architecture firm from Ocean Grove, and he brought the concept drawing (above) with him. Click on the drawing to make it larger and easier to study.
In an email from JP Gradone, COO of the CMA, Gradone said, ” The OGCMA and WAVE have agreed to make WAVE the primary developer. The OGCMA will have covenants that will run with the land, and Neptune Township will be the authority to oversee the project as The Redevelopment Entity.”
The new plan is not official and it contains the same elements as before: condos, hotel, underground garage and retail. But there will now be some major quantitative differences.
In addition, the concept plan actually shows us, in a limited way, what the project will look like. The diagram by the Shore Point Architecture firm has no seal, no signature and no date. In addition, there was no engineers report or signature, and the project has yet to be reviewed by the Department of Environmental Protection.
Bishop wasn’t planning to share the diagram with the public, but when challenged by citizen Jack Bredin, and with the approval of the Township Attorney, Committeeman Houghtaling handed a copy to Bredin.
Interestingly, Bishop did not offer to explain why these changes were made. The redevelopers likely didn’t cut back on millions of dollars in profits just to make Grovers feel better about the project.
Here are four of the differences between the new plan and the 2008 NERP which Bishop was willing to share, and then we will make some observations of our own.
- Condos: reduced from 78 multi-units to 39
- Single family homes: increased from 7 to 10
- Hotel rooms : reduced from 80 to 40
- Retail space: reduced from 15,000 sq. ft. to 12,000 Sq. ft.
Then comes the drawing from Shore Point, and that is very interesting, even though is merely a “concept.” Remember that the original NERP which was accepted in 2008 and is still officially in effect had no detailed diagram or plan to show. But now we can see some details:
- There will be 10 single family detached homes, 2.5 stories high along Spray Avenue (a narrow one way street.) Each home will have its own underground garage. Each home will face Spray Ave. and retain a historic setback.
- The hotel, despite the reduced number of rooms, will be 5 stories high. It will have some surface parking (6 handicap and 13 standard) and a loading zone. It will partially abut the boardwalk to its east. On the second floor are 11 rooms; 3rd floor 11 rooms; 4th floor 11 rooms; 5th floor 7 rooms. The first floor is for commercial enterprises.
- The condos will face the lake. Those two multi-family buildings will be 3 and 4 stories and contain 39 units total. It looks like there will be a roadway alongside the lake.
- The current white building standing alone on the beach and boardwalk will be a 4 story multi-family structure with retail, health club and restaurant on the first floor. There will be a conference banquet facility on the second floor along with the restaurant. It’s unclear how that building will be accessed for vehicles. A pedestrian bridge will cross over the boardwalk. Condos will be on the top floors.
- Retail will be 12 units.
- The garage will have 139 underground spaces. It will have egress and ingress via Spray Ave. Exit out to Ocean Avenue.
You can study this diagram yourself. However consider this:
- Because the changes involve “core elements,” the original 2008 NERP may have to be rescinded and a new one approved, including public hearings. In addition, the Township may have to open up the redevelopment project to new bidders. So will the Township conduct a search for a new redeveloper, and when will we have a signed redeveloper agreement?
- The whole project will fail if an engineer does not sign off on the structural integrity of the garage and related structures.
- RSIS parking standards will be met. At some point a traffic study will be required.
- The last step before construction will be another Planning Board hearing.
So, the plot thickens. Let’s pay attention.
Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger
DALIDA:
The whole complex design pays no attention to the problem of access to it. Ocean Avenue will be at a standstill, and Main Avenue will be just as affected as the only way to get in (Broadway not the main entrance used).
It’s ridiculous! When people stop coming because it’s “too crowded and no parking,” they can sit and look at their mess from the beach– if it’s still there.
See the second #4 of 6 that the white building will be a 4 story multi-family. And how about that pool on the beach south of the Pavilion? ken
The existing building is an Historic structure, I would hope the HPC can stand up to them!
Is infrastucture a passing thought here? Water and flood mitigation, traffic, access? Developers love to sell condos, houses and stores, but can Wesley Lake, sand and sea reasonably stand up to those commercial assaults. We need a DEP certified engineer to check this out.
May I say that I applaud everyone who took the time to make some thoughtful and informative comments regarding this project. NERP will have a huge impact on all OG residents and we need to pay attention. It certainly got me thinking.
View: The ten single family homes are detached. Each has an underground garage, probably like some you can see around town, eg on Seaview Ave.near Founders’ Park, roughly across from the Park View. There is no information currently available re: disabled or low income housing. —Paul
I would like to know whether the developers know the depth to the water table. It is easy to determine – drill a hole and turn the results over to an engineer who will establish seasonal variation.
I think the feasibility of below-ground parking may be a big problem when this becomes known. And the banquet hall will need to be alcohol-free – not a great selling point—-as will the hotel.
Others have raised many significant issues above, including fire safety. Not trivial. What about insurance in the event of a major storm or loss; is this thing even properly insurable?
And the entire concept just seems so out of character for Ocean Grove.
I am most curious about the statement that the 10 single family homes will have attached garages, seems like a double standard at work here as the HPC will not approve garages except where there is an existing curb cut. Can anyone shed light on this? Any provision for disabled or low income units?
Concerned resident: The Pavilion Building is in a “redevelopment area” because the Township determined the building to be “substandard, unsafe, unsanitary, and dilapidated”…
There is a new plan for redevelopment.
The zoning permits residential uses to be located at the upper stories of mixed use buildings. The redeveloper is exercising his right to do just that.
W.A.V.E. has proposed that the EXISTING (2 1/2 story ) PAVILION be redeveloped as a 4 story building with multi-family units on the 3rd and 4th floors.
The plan is available at the office of the Township Clerk, and the Blogfinger article you are commenting on.
I can not image DEP/CAFRA approving a 138 underground parking places in a designated flood zone. The Pavilion building was practically demolished during Sandy with the waves going right through the building. The water table is very high in this area and it is right next to a lake and the ocean
Also, I am not sure of what Jack Bredin is talking about when he is referring to private residents/condos being in the now existing pavilion building. That building has had retail stores in the lower level, a restaurant and a banquet facility in the top level. Never was it approved for private residents/condos right on the beachfront. Could this please be corrected by someone that knows about the zoning/planning in that area.
greed knows no shame
Thank you for posting the plan — it is very instructive. It mentions multi-family units in the building on the East side of the boardwalk on floors 2-4; those units are not counted in the table, nor are they counted towards the number of parking spaces needed. Further, I wonder what the plan is for fire fighting should that building catch fire — can fire trucks travel along the boardwalk? When there will be people living in that structure, it surely is important to have good access for fire fighters.
I note that the path along the lake is marked as a “promenade”, so it will not be a street as you suggested/hoped.
While the pool is a fun idea, it looks like it would block off about 124′ of the beach from swimming/surfing.
Nevertheless, this plan is a significant improvement over what we heard originally.
Jack Bredin is very knowledgable concerning zoning and development issues. Through Jack’s research and dedication we can now see the “secret” proposal. I was upset that his 5 minute presentation was cut short, as well as the rude and capricious tone towards Jack from the Mayor. Thank you Jack for keeping this important issue in the forefront.
Betting on Asbury Park is a huge risk—not the best track record. How many of those projects have started and stopped over the last 40 – 50 years? Be that as it may, AP has something Ocean Grove does not, direct access and an abundance of parking.
Oh My,
I agree with you for all the reasons but one, which is probably what is driving this project. The Asbury condo market is rather hot right now, the last development, Vive, sold out in one day; there are at least two more under construction right now and I think one of them sold out the first phase in about an hour a couple of weeks ago.
There is the ruin on the beachfront which will have to be torn down and rebuilt, but I assume WAVE is looking at the progress in AP and feels there is a need to be filled and is betting their $$$ on that. Something is going to be built there eventually. I am in favor of some nice houses, maybe a few condos, but nothing over 2.5 stories, mandated parking, adherence to the flair and some more greenspace or a small park. 5 stories is too tall!
A swimming pool … on the beach? Underground parking? No adequate access to a planned high density project and retail space? In a flood plain no less. Have they forgotten what Sandy did to that pavilion and the whole North End and boardwalk? Aren’t there new building codes for beach front developments and housing? All looking over a polluted, flood prone lake, stalled and vacant Asbury Park condo lots, the ruins of an old steam plant, crumbling Casino complex and a parking lot. Delusional.
Let’s hope the CMA doesn’t try to make this seem like a major victory for the town that the plan’s total units have been reduced somewhat. This is still an absurd monstrosity. This should be 25 single family homes. Period. Pretending that this is a great improvement is like telling someone that instead of dying from a disease, they will only be severely crippled — so they should be thankful.
Don’t get snookered. The CMA and Neptune is trying to make a financial fortune by destroying our town.
Doug : The number of condo units did drop by 31 units on block (1).
However, the Pavillion added 30 residential units, an additional restaurant, a health club and banquet facility.
There is a new building services unit and a storage unit that could be converted into condos.
There are 3 additional single family houses. There is a new 40 x 100′ swimming pool. The zoning permits at least 4 residential units above the Boardwalk retail. The only reduction is with the Hotel.
Keep in mind the new plan is only a proposal that is not chiseled in stone.
Radar: This is not a private development project. It became public when the “area in need of redevelopment” was declared in 2007. According to Mr. Gradone of the CMA, “Neptune Township will be the authority to oversee the project as The Redevelopment Entity.” So Neptune should have all the answers, and they should become totally transparent on all this—but they are not. The public is not being well served by this project. –Paul @Blogfinger
O-4: That white pavilion building on the east side of the boardwalk where there used to be a restaurant and dollar store was sitting on the boardwalk with its rear end on the beach. It was built on pilings, but when Sandy hit, the whole rear end collapsed.
So how will they engineer a 4 story building to be safe which is designated to hold housing, a restaurant, a conference/banquet facility, retail on the boardwalk and a health club? Also the design doesn’t show how vehicles such as garbage trucks will get across the boardwalk to access that building? It will be interesting to see what an engineer and a DEP engineer will say about these issues. Don’t forget, the architect did not sign this new plan—-it is a concept at this time.
Doug. Thank you. The original (2008) plan called for 70 “multi-family” units. The new plan calls for two buildings with a total of 39 multi-family units. I have made the correction.—Paul
There are still too many unanswered questions:
1. Will the terrain support underground garages?
2. Has testing of the ground for such support ever been undertaken?
3. Why hasn’t CMA revealed its old contractual agreement with WAVE?
4. Who are the principals other than Mr. Gannon in WAVE?
5. Will the proposed hotel regardless of size be taxable as unrelated business income of the non-profit CMA and be subject to taxation, rules and regulations like other hotels in the township?
6. Will commercial enterprises pay rents to CMA? Who owns the property?
7. Will all housing, whether joined, single families, or condos pay ground rentals to CMA similar to current procedures based on construction costs, yearly percentage increases, and eventually cost-of-living indices?
8. And from whom are these housing facilities purchased?
Who has the answers?
My first thought is that’s an awful lot of planned retail space for such a remote location. Once again, only one way to get there, Ocean Ave. That pavilion took a beating from Sandy, it may not be legal any more since it sits on the beach proper and just where will potential patrons park?
Minor note, you mention 39 condos in the beginning and 70 later on?