#1 Says Bear
, “No curb-cut – no driveway – no garage – NO PROBLEM. Just jump the curb and park in your yard – also know as the historic setback!!” Bath Avenue at Ocean Avenue, OG. 8/19/16 © Neptune PD traffic vehicle spotted around town.
#2 Gail Morrell photo 8/20/16 © Says Gail:
“Mr. Henry parks here most days when, we assume, he is working in town. In fact,the truck remains overnight as well as now spending the weekends. He has clued in the owner of the next truck, who also remains all weekend. These guys commute from elsewhere to these vehicles. One sign says Manchester. They are at Central between Surf and Atlantic facing Founders Park.” A new piece added to the parking puzzle.
#3 From the front lines of the parking wars in Ocean Grove we hear from Paul Devine:
“Blogman- Upon returning to the Grove at 7:30 pm, parking proved to be elusive. After driving up many streets we saw someone getting into at van on Abbott near Pilgrim. We politely waited for the space when a passenger placed two cones on the street as he was pulling out. I asked him why he did that, he ignored my query and drove away.
The people sitting on the porch in front of the “coned” space informed me that it was their next door neighbor and not them who encumbered the space. The cones even had a house number on them, which corresponded with the house next door.
I removed the cones, placed them on the sidewalk in front of the house matching the number and parked in the space.
Hopefully, the car will not be vandalized by the illegal “coner”.
Talk about chutzpah!”
Editor’s note:
Here is a link to a 2013 BF post on this subject with over 30 comments:
https://blogfinger.net/2016/01/17/letter-to-editor-blocking-parking-spaces-2/
GEORGE STRAIT
OhGee: That was exactly one of the reasons given in a past parking study.
Miss Respect of History, that is completely untrue.
A simple Google search provides a long list of National Historic Districts that have parking meters including Cape May, Savannah, and Georgetown for starters.
Maybe you ought to research before giving out misinformation.
Miss Respect: if we can have a plastic boardwalk then we can certainly suffer a few small parking stations along the beachfront without further damaging the historic character of the town.
It is well past time for Randy Bishop to leave the Township Committee. It is dishonest of him to suggest that parking permits would cost the residents of Ocean Grove anything at all! Any additional spending (and really, would there be much? We already have parking enforcement, don’t we?) would be spread across the entire tax base of Neptune, whose homeowners would not even notice any incremental increase.
Is Randy Bishop suggesting that Ocean Grove residents stop paying taxes that cover improvements to Midtown, Shark River Hills, Gables, etc?. Randy is just blowing smoke on his way out to cover his ineptitude in actually addressing a very real problem that affects a significant community in the Township.
Editor’s Note: Regarding the differences between OG taxpayers and Neptune, read our piece from 2013 regarding the rebuilding of the Township Marina.
https://blogfinger.net/2013/06/16/the-fairness-dilemma-in-neptune-township-why-are-the-taxpayers-of-ocean-grove-treated-differently-than-those-in-another-part-of-town/
BF – Unfortunately they tried the busing-in thing, and no one took the bus. It went back and forth empty two summers in a row. People don’t want to leave their cars outside the gates. And, they want all their crap that’s in the cars during the day. The Camp Meeting will continue to advertise events and not give a darn about where people will park. They just feel if people don’t like it then don’t come to town. Look at the 6,000 seat auditorium and look at the chintzy, unacceptable minute handicapped parking they offer—- what, 20 spaces? Disgrace!
The gates should be closed when town is saturated. They still do that in other tourist areas. Families are invited here, and then they get frustrated and slapped in the face. More than once a car has pulled up and asked “Where can I park, I’ve been driving around for 40 minutes?” The only answer right now is, “Don’t come.”
Not True – Parking meters are not in adherence of a national historic landmark. If the Historic Preservation Committee is going to tell us what color to paint our houses then they surely can’t approve “parking meters!”
If Bishop and the other Committeemen really wanted to help with parking issues,they would do anything that they could think of to reduce the number of cars in town.
reshuffling the deck is a diversion.
We have covered the issue of the giant events that suck tourists and their mega-vehicles into the Grove’s tiny streets. But, even more important, as a preventive measure, no more condos should be allowed in town unless off street parking were offered with it, and, as we all know, that is next to impossible (unless it’s next to a lot where a parking garage would be built.) Only single family Victorian homes should be allowed in the future following fires, demolition, etc.
Then, or course there is the use of the elementary school or other out-of-town locations for parking/with buses into town for huge events. Paul @Blogfinger
$500-1000 per year? Randy Bishop should be ashamed of himself. That is complete scare tactic statement! He wants no changes to parking in OG. Why? I believe it is because his B&B is on a narrow, north-end residential street where parking is limited as it is. (compared to the B&B’s/hotels that line Ocean Ave and Main Ave, where diagonal parking = more spaces). So his motives are incredibly self-serving – he wants his paying customers to be able to park wherever they want.
To further prove the point, earlier this summer when the OGHOA presented their parking proposals to the Neptune Township Committee, Bishop was quoted in The Coaster stating he had served on FIVE previous Parking Committees through the years. What an embarrassing fact for a Committeeman to admit to! Five different opportunities for change, and he accomplished absolutely nothing. Which, I think, in this case, is exactly what he wanted.
The increased amount of parking tickets will produce revenue to cover the additional costs of police enforcement. Add some meters to Ocean Avenue too. That has proven to be a cash cow for our adjacent neighbors Asbury Park and Bradley Beach.
Cost? We pay too much already in taxes.
The “enforcement personnel” will be writing lots of tickets for violations, so Neptune (and probably the ogcma) will be making money. Permits MUST BE FREE for homeowners (renters will have to discuss who gets the permit with landlords).
Who is on this illustrious committee?
The ‘Parking Task Force’ is reviewing parking problems in Ocean Grove, and so, their meeting should be held in Ocean Grove with the Public invited to attend, and make comments.
However, taking their cue from the Township Committee, their meetings will be held in Neptune behind closed doors where the Public and Press are not invited to attend, because they know what is best for us.
‘Ours is just to do and die, and not to reason why’
The new Parking Task Force held its first meeting on August 16. Although they had the meeting, they did not choose a chairman. The parking consultant has so far not submitted a report. The Township has asked the group to submit their recommendations by December 31, 2016. Their next meeting is September 6.
A confidential source has told Blogfinger that Randy Bishop, who is leaving the Committee, said that a parking sticker would cost the homeowner $500-$1,000 per year mostly because of increased enforcement personnel.
Just Wondering: At the present time, there is no plan for stickers, so your question is unanswerable. On Blogfinger we suggested that stickers be provided for homeowners, but that was one idea among many. I doubt that any plan would work that would provide stickers for renters, unless the landlord were to allow a renter to use his spot. But we don’t even know if the idea of stickers will be feasible, with or without the inclusion of renters. So I suggest that we sit tight while the “task force” does its task.
Just wondering what my friend will do if stickers are issued. She has been renting an apartment on Central Ave for years and has become part of the community. Will she not be given a sticker since she doesn’t “own” a house?
I want to comment about the Conehead above:
I had a neighbor who was a VIP, a very inconsiderate parker, who consistently saved TWO places on our congested Asbury Avenue. One Friday afternoon (beginning of a 3 day summer weekend), I moved his garbage cans and parked my work car in ONE of his saved spots. I drove away Tuesday morning.
About two weeks later, my own car had a sliced tire – irreparable. This jerk has moved out of OG, but it shows how territorial some people can be.
I lived in Edgewater N.J. before I moved to Ocean Grove.
They have an ordinance that if someone abandons or leaves their car for more than 72 hrs, you could call the police.
They would mark the tires, and the next day tow it away.
We had no driveway, similar to Ocean Grove, and parking was always tight.
But it was always a relief to know that you could resolve this problem if someone inconsiderately left their car for long periods of time.
Regarding Mr. Henry, I was simply sharing that Henry lives here, since it was suggested in your blog that he does not live in town, as it was written:
“Mr. Henry parks here most days when, we assume, he is working in town…”
Dr. Carol: If a house has a curb cut and a driveway, you want to object to a car being parked in that driveway if you feel it’s in the flare?
Would you rather it be on the street compounding the problem?
It’s clear this situation requires pragmatism, not nitpicking or busybodies.
Resident? Your point is that Mr. Henry’s work truck is just fine sitting there all the time because he is a resident. Well, you are certainly correct,even if he is not a resident, but if we are speculating about ways to increase parking spaces,then we can talk about all sorts of ideas including commercial vehicles such as Mr. Henry’s truck. You can even talk about residents who leave a car here while they escape to Florida for the winter. I don’t mind. Any ideas are fair game.
We are currently in a process regarding the parking debate where a professional will be consulted and where a variety of ideas will be considered by a municipal “task force.” So now it’s sort of fun to look at all the variations on the theme of how do people beat the current system.
Along these lines, some Grovers have suggested that a parking permit for each house could be a way to offer a measure of kindness for taxpayers. Clearly stickers are just one among many ideas put forth regarding parking in the Grove. No one has offered a specific plan for such stickers and no one has asserted that stickers would solve the town’s parking problems or even be feasible. And some Grovers are even having angry arguments about this topic.
But to start wild debates over the sticker idea is a bit premature as is the “mysterious case of Mr. Henry and his parked truck.” (soon to be the theme of Woody’s next movie; sort of like the “Jade Scorpion.”)
Let’s just enjoy the parade of clever ideas to find or keep a space. It’s possible a pragmatic idea might actually flop in front of us.
When I called to get a quote from Henry’s painting (about a year ago), his wife told me they live in town.
The car parked in the grass in the flare is violating city ordinances. No car may park in the flare, even if on a driveway.