To the Editor:
Re: Issues surrounding Mary’s Place construction.
Paul, You bring up Mary’s Place, and it reminds us that the noise and the disruption in and around that project continue at a pace.
One of our neighbors raised questions at a meeting during the approval process and she was roundly criticized for daring to question a project with such good hopes and intentions. All she wanted was information and she was made out to be a hard-hearted person. Her point was simply that no neighbors had been notified about the project and the impact that it might have on neighbors adjacent to the site, and how parking would be impacted.
Not even the courtesy of an approach to their soon-to-be neighbors informing them of a time-line or anything else regarding this project. Not a word. Not a letter asking us for our forbearance. Nothing. All we had were rumors to contend with.
Summer time is here and parking, as usual is a challenge, but the cones and trucks manage to take up spaces that could be used by Grovers and guests. The noise during the day is constant. In the meanwhile, one neighbor who recently had surgery and is recuperating, has had to endure the constancy of this construction project. The summer will come and go and noise will persist.
Paul, you have raised important questions in the NERP and should be commended for insisting on transparency and clarity in such efforts.
We thank you for raising these critical questions.
CONCERNED NEIGHBOR
Ocean Grove, NJ, July 9, 2015
Jesse: I wrote about my efforts to question this process at town hall where I received an aggressive cold shoulder. The zoning officer was openly hostile to my questions as was his boss. The Township Administrator denied any favoritism in the zoning process for this applicant, even though the rationale for the zoning designation was highly suspicious in my opinion.
But nobody else spoke up to challenge the process, and finally Blogfinger threw in the towel. Our elected officials were missing in action showing no interest in such zoning changes. If you use the BF search box on top, just type Mary’s Place, and you will see our articles about the zoning.
Now we are faced with recognizing serious zoning issues having to do with the North End development. The HOA should have jumped on this in 2007, but they became enablers for the Committee, and they still are. —Paul @Blogfinger
While no one can be sure of motivations here, so please, this is just a correlation…… Mary’s Place is run by the wife of the developer who is building this maxed-out structure on Main. While it just may be a coincidence, a cynic might wonder if it is a conflict of interest for this “charity” to be using its funds to economically benefit the family that runs the charity.
In this context, the biggest, most expansive structure that can be squeezed in would maximize this economic benefit.
Also provides the motivation needed to bust the zoning of Ocean Grove in order to build a much larger structure. Again, I’m not saying that there is anything untoward here…just observing.
The suggestion that neighbors should have gone to meetings to address issues of zoning changes might be reasonable had all those neighbors received said notices. Nothing had ever been sent out to any neighbors as far as I know. Not even a line regarding any such meeting. This process was incredibly fast and stealth-like as it was moved from application to approval to construction.
Blogfinger ought to be commended for taking a stand here and raising very important questions.
This is a small town that has great appeal for so many reasons, but it also requires some degree of neighborliness and following protocol. That construction is one of the most aggressive building projects I have seen in a very long time, taking every square inch and building out to its outermost borders. I hope that town inspectors are looking out for the property lines on either side.
The first folks learned of this project was when the sign went up and after that things moved very quickly. For several years those two lots had signs that advertised a place where two old style Victorians could be built, much like the lovely house behind it that was constructed on Heck a few years back.
Now one of our neighbors has raised the question about the height of the new structure. Now it seems that the two or three and a half story building’s roof-line seems higher than the four floor flat roofed building next to it. So, is it two and a half or a three and a half story building? Was it filed as such and approved as such? This is what prompted one of our neighbors to raised the issue a few days ago.
Hopefully the OGCMA will use some of their $millions in gains from the North End debacle to hire agressive lawyers to stop travesties like Mary’s Place from happening again. They should also go after derelict houses too.
Wow. Talk about conflict of interest. Developers run charity to enable development. You can’t accept any charity is genuine anymore.
Main: Look up the board members of Mary’s Place both past and present. Developers and organization are one and the same.
While we can vilify the developers, it’s the people and organizations who work with the developers that are really responsible. Mary’s Place could have decided they wanted to be good neighbors and not bust the zoning of OG. It was Mary’s Place’s leadership that chose to use the devloper they are using and to disregard the will of the town. Even if the developer pushed to bust the zoning, as a responsible charity, the MP leadership could have said no.
Also accountable are town officials and others that have cozy relationships with the developers. Who from the town went to the developer in this case and told them we don’t want to have the zoning busted?
Two nice victorian houses would have been a great addition. It’s really a shame that this situartion was handled so poorly and with so much subterfuge.
Well said, OhGee!
I’m tired of the Gannons justifying their bad behavior – whether it be not obtaining proper permits (North End building), complete disregard for neighbors….Mary’s Place construction, their messy lot adjacent to the Jersey Shore Arts Center, the loud parties at the ‘Bank’ on Ocean Ave…. etc.
4th of July fireworks were practically drowned out for those of us attempting to watch on the OG beach – by humongous loud-speakers on top of ‘The Bank’ blasting Katy Perry.
Gannons please stop acting like selfish 12 year olds and respect the people and the town that you have made your millions from.
All should be concerned that — if a fire or whatever opens up a couple lots next to your home — a community shelter could be built next to you. I doubt that any homeowner wants such a thing nearby (especially if the next one is for recovering drug addicts).
This town is special, and willful zoning busters, like Mary’s Place, deserve no respect, are bad neighbors, and should not be welcome in our town.
Also, please be aware, that Mary’s Place could, 5 years from now, sell to a methadone clinic. How’d you like that?
And we can thank Blogfinger for telling it like it is.
SR: I’m sorry, but this is not about Mary’s Place mission. They have been helping women with cancer for years in this town, and the current discussions have nothing to do with that.
And it is not time to “move along” because zoning is what supposedly keeps the land in a town from being exploited instead of being used in the best interest of all citizens. It is a way to promote equality in our society, regardless of how much money or influence one has. That is the big picture.
As for Mary’s Place, it is a done deal, but, like the Greek Temple, it will remain the subject of discussion because what happened there will be an example for future reference. It will be a part of Ocean Grove history for more reasons than just its fine work with cancer patients.
I think it is time to move along and embrace what Mary’s Place mission is all about, giving women with cancer a day in the Grove!
Appleation: As a wise Grover told me, during a discussion regarding how zone busting occurs in this town and other towns, “There is the way it should be done, and there is the way it will be done.”
The game involves manipulating and bypassing the laws on zoning without necessarily breaking any laws (although sometimes that is the case.) This can occur when normal checks and balances fail due to favoritism, lawyers, and complicit officials. Failure of the media and public apathy help the process.
It’s premature to guess what will happen at the Park View. Maybe the owner will surprise everyone and erect a single family Victorian.
Going forward, the best thing that can be done by the citizens of OG is to pay attention to the meetings schedules and agendas and then rally the troops to attend in large numbers and make your voices heard. This is a job that the Home Groaners ought to embrace. After all, they weren’t always an inept and ineffective group. At one time, about 25 years ago, they were heroic and effective.—-Paul @Blogfinger
One need only look to who is behind this project. Same family owns the sometimes land fill dump next to the old high school and are the primary movers behind the North End development.
The fact that a charity organization was used, in part, in such a manner, is not surprising. It still amazes me that such a project is considered a benefit to the community at large. Wasn’t the original Mary’s Place in Seattle a Catholic charity homeless woman’s shelter?
Doug is correct – the time for construction is now and sadly the neghbors must endure for the benifit of the town. The time to concern oneself with this building was when it applied for zoning adjustments,HPC approvals etc. As with such projects, the neighbors might have been able to be vocal-not necessarily “heard” at one of these “public” hearings. As for parking,that seems to be a non-issue as long as the building will pay taxes to the TWP. Look at the 9 condos on Surf Ave. What tax status will this new building have? Alas,what’s done is done.
They have to build it sometime and summer is construction time! Something was eventually going to be built there, Mary’s Place just happens to be it.
They should be meeting all of the rules of Neptune township, no Sunday noise and only between 7:00 and 7:00 on other days (I think those are the hours?). If they break the rules or have an unsafe work area or leave debris on site, then everyone concerned should call code enforcement.
The parking issue is a pain, but it is no worse than the locker cars that never move at the beach or the AP cars parked for weeks at a time and dumpsters sitting for weeks on the North End. According to Neptune Police, if a vehicle is registered it can be parked for as long as they want, even with an invalid inspection sticker and a flat tire!
Concerned neighbor. I think the incident you are referencing was on September 28, 2014 when the HOA held a meeting to discuss the zoning issues surrounding Mary’s Place. Home Owner’s official, Barbara Burns, gave a lecture on the subject and refused to consider any possibility that there may have been improprieties during the MP zoning application.
She tried to silence the opposition down by saying, “No one can question this.”
And I recall that a woman in the audience who tried to question the process was shut down and shut up by our own HOA leaders. Such arrogance! And it does resemble the HOA’s attitude about the NERP.
—-Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger