The Zoning Board of Adjustment will meet in February regarding the Laingdon Hotel (1875). Some Grovers have alerted us (see quotes below) to this future agenda item which suggests another sneak zoning attack in the Grove. It seems that “Sprout Health” wants to take over the hotel and close it to the public. They want a “use variance.”
Note that the Laingdon went up for sale in 2014 for $2.9 million.I recall that the owner of the Manchester Hotel said that hotels were not good investments any longer in OG, and he was aiming for condominiums before his hotel burned to the ground in 2010.
The Internet site for Sprout says, “The Sprout Health Group is a healthcare management company that owns and operates drug and alcohol rehab. centers and medical detox. facilities across the United States.”
Here is the Zoning Board of Adjustment agenda item in question:
ZB16/19 – Sprout Health, LLC – Block 114, Lot 12 – 8 Ocean Avenue – Applicant has submitted an application for Use Variance to utilize an existing 18 guest room hotel, open to the general public as a 17 guest room hotel, not open to the general public. Applicant is represented by Jennifer S. Krimko, Esq. Notice was not provided for this meeting date. Ms. Krimko has requested this matter be adjourned to the February 2017 meeting date and proper notice will be provided for the new hearing date.
Comments have been rolling into Blogfinger about this, even before we post it. The Laingdon will become a big story in the Grove if it is what we think it is:
From Grover Larry: “It would appear that The Laingdon Hotel at 8 Ocean is attempting to change use from a hotel to a drug and rehab center run by “Sprout Health Group.”
The agenda refers to the applicant which is usually the owner. Has Hans Kretschman sold the hotel? Has “Sprout” purchased it? Something is going on here, Paul. Just thought you would find this of interest after all the commotion about Mary’s Place.”
From Rosemary Salow: ” Please note the application from “Sprout Health” regarding 8 Ocean Ave. I believe this is the Laingdon Inn bed and breakfast, Sprout Health operates drug and alcohol rehab facilities. So if I’m reading this correctly, what is being proposed is that a bed and breakfast be converted into an alcohol and drug rehab facility. Can you shed any light on this?
From Kevin Chambers: “For a change of use a hotel owner must prove that the hotel use is no longer viable. For the last 40 years every hotel owner that has converted to condos has proved that argument. Then why do we still have hotels in our zoning?”
From Penny: “I just saw the ZBA agenda item about turning the beautiful historical (1875) Laingdon Hotel into a rehab center. I am horrified . What is happening to our quaint Victorian town? One huge building after another which is supposed to “fit in” but won’t if this request is granted.”
From Helen: “Did you see in the agenda for the Zoning Board that a Health Company owner of 8 Ocean Ave wants to change it. Another Mary’s Place??”
From Harold: “From company’s name “Health Growth” could be a residential spa….
facility to get well, or perhaps a house of ill-repute??”
Editor’s Note:
Is this deja vu all over again? Can we ever forget the sleight of hand that allowed Mary’s Place to receive a special zoning dispensation as a “community shelter ?” Has the Mary’s Place fiasco become a precedent-setter in the Grove?
Will our historic town become a shopping mall for healthcare facilities? Will the ZBA allow another mutilation of existing zoning to happen again–this time at a historic site on Ocean Avenue resulting in more congestion and threats to our lifestyle—especially near the North End? Will this become the last straw that begins a down-hill slide threatening our historic designation and our home values?
This should be addressed by the Home Groaners now before the ZBA goes rogue and forgets whom it represents. But, unfortunately, the HOA has already forgotten whom it represents. After all, the HOA is urging implementation of that miserable North End Redevelopment Plan.
Well, don’t get too excited till we all go to that ZBA meeting in February when this proposal is going to be formally presented and we get all the facts. An ad hoc committee independent of the HOA should form now to provide trusted vigilance for all Ocean Grove residents and home owners. We have to find out who’s naughty and who’s nice. Ho, Ho. Ho!
Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger (originally posted on Dec. 3, 2016 but moved to January 2017 in view of new interest in the subject–see latest comment on Jan 2..)
DORIS DAY:
We understand that the natives are getting restless regarding the possibility of a drug rehabilitation facility on Ocean Avenue at the Laingdon Hotel.
So far we at Blogfinger have focused on the zoning issues at play, but we may open our digital doors for a discussion regarding the implications of allowing a drug rehab facility to open in the Grove.
Granted we have not yet heard the presentation of Sprout, but that may not occur for some time, In fact, there are Grovers who are demanding that the hearing be put off until most of us are in town—ie this summer.
We are already hearing from those who believe that we may now be at a turning point in the Grove regarding the future of our town.
There is no reason why the topic can’t be discussed at this point.
Stay tuned.
Thank you, I do plan on speaking at the meeting…wouldn’t all of us with multi-family homes want to “cash in” and sell our houses to a healthcare company? This application will set a precedent that will cause that to happen.
Jay: Neptune will send an announcement of the Feb. ZBA meeting including the agenda. You can call Neptune Township and ask to be placed on their email notification list. Ask for Roberta Grace. You can email her at rgrace@neptunetownship.org
Blogfinger will also announce that meeting, and we will have a reporter there. It would be good if many residents would come and even consider saying something (I believe anyone can go to the mike for 5 minutes–or perhaps longer; we’ll find out.) —Paul @Blogfinger
Thank you for the information. Can you update us to let us know when the Neptune town meeting will be held, so hopefully many OG summer residents can plan to attend.
Jack: On Blogfinger we have been reporting on how legitimate procedures are often ignored by Neptune Township when it comes to land-use in Ocean Grove. It seems that insiders in town have learned to circumvent lawful procedures in order to get what they want without any challenges by the State, the County, or even the citizens themselves. What’s amazing is how an outsider such as Sprout can easily tap into that process.
Variations on this sort of scheme can be found in other towns, and it works in places such as here until it doesn’t work any longer, and then there will be trouble.
Meanwhile we at Blogfinger will continue to describe what we see, because some of us do believe in the rule of law as the best way to function in our democracy. Some of us believe in equal justice under the law.
The land use administrator was premature when referring the Laingdon application to the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
The Laingdon’s use as a historic hotel can continue without the need for a “use variance,” but this is not the case.
The applicant is seeking a use variance because they want to change the hotel’s use and use the Laingdon building as an alcohol and drug rehabilitation center.
Such a use is not a permitted use in Neptune Township or in Ocean Grove, and so, there is no zoning schedule. (Front yard, side yard, lot size, etc) to go by.
The new use must first be permitted in the Township. The Planning Board would have to amend the Master Plan; the Township Committee would then have to carve out one specific lot in Ocean Grove and rezone that lot to permit a rehab center, along with a zoning schedule; and that,of course, would be illegal “spot zoning.”
By the way, the above correct process should all take place at Planning Board and Committee meetings, and not by a “wink and a nod.”
According to the Neptune Land Development Ordinance, the HD-O (Historic District Oceanfront) zone where the Laingdon Hotel lives permits “historic hotels” and “community shelters.” What does the word “community” mean when used in this context and what does “historic” mean?
HD-O zoning specifies uses, and if a different use is desired, a variance needs to be granted. Interestingly, no variance was required when Mary’s Place wanted to be approved. In that case, the Zoning Officer simply took a category (“community shelter”) from his State grab-bag, spun it around, and granted permission for a private operation to go ahead. The ZBA never saw an application for Mary’s Place.
Because Mary’s Place was force-fed into that “community shelter” category, do we now have a precedent to squeeze a private “shelter” into the HD-O zone? Does our “community” need “shelters” for hard luck categories like hospice care, battered women, developmentally disabled people, or addicts needing detox? Is each town in New Jersey required to provide such facilities if they are not actually needed at that location?
It remains to be seen if the ZBA would be willing to consider a private (closed to the public) detox. facility at the Laingdon to be a “community shelter.” As others have pointed out, Ocean Grove does not need a community detox. shelter, so how does the word “community” come into play here? Will the ZBA decide that we need another community shelter even if it clashes with other town goals as listed in the Master Plan?
Could a private hotel, closed to the public, be considered a “historic hotel?” This proposed use would be nothing like what went on at the Laingdon during the last three centuries. The fact that a variance is being sought suggests that it will not actually be a hotel, despite what lawyer Krimko says in the application.
Shouldn’t our ZBA decide this application based on current zoning laws and historic imperatives, or will they get weak kneed every time some sad situation rides into town with a lawyer and connections at the Mother Ship?
The HOA should hire another lawyer—this time to sort out the rules of the game at this legal land-use playground so the citizens can know about the options. Too bad they spent over $7,000.00 fussing about ground rents.
From an email to the NJ News Commons at Montclair University:
“Blogfinger alerts the town of Ocean Grove that the historic Laingdon Hotel on Ocean Avenue may become a drug rehab center. OG is a tourist/residential town on the State and National Historic Registers, and the people who live there are very much concerned about historic preservation, safety, crowding, and lifestyles. The Laingdon story will stir significant controversies.
“Recently Blogfinger covered an attempt by Neptune Township to weaken the Historic Preservation Guidelines to favor development. Now the Laingdon Hotel story offers another situation that could change the town. We will follow this unusual story and see whether compassion, commercialization, Jersey Shore living, and historic preservation can all come together in this tiny town. The foundations are beginning to shake.
“For a small town, many big issues seem to land here including gay rights, freedom of speech, religious rights and honest government. No one covers these stories on a regular basis but Blogfinger.”
My understanding is that the sale of the Laingdon has been completed contingent on getting a use variance from the Zoning Board. So Sprout will complete the purchase after the expected zoning approval and then convert into a drug rehab clinic. I can’t imagine that Sprout and Hans are simply waiting around and hoping to get approval. Being pros obviously they are taking the steps needed today by campaigning to the Zoning Board so that the official vote will simply be a formality. Why would they wait and wonder???
Hans likely received an above market price, and this is a unique opportunity for Sprout, so for sure they will take all steps necessary to consummate this transaction.
For the residents to simply wait around and ineffectively complain about how “unfair” this is will be ignored by the Zoning Board; they are both judge and jury since they have no downside. Amusing how the vote has been requested for February when all residents within close proximity to the Laingdon will be in town checking their mail for the zoning variance notices that they have a right to reject.
As an earlier post suggested, it’s imperative to galvanize the community quickly to plan a counter campaign to Sprout and Hans to prevent this facility from being approved. Once approved I can imagine the second complex will be built in Hans’ house when he then sells that to Sprout as well. If that happens then OG will tumble into the abyss…
Krimko is an uncommon name. Is Jennifer Krimko related to former Neptune Committeeman and Mayor Krimko?
Editor’s note: Jennifer Krimko is a lawyer with a large firm in this area. She often represents clients before the Neptune Boards. Ms. Krimko is related to the late former Mayor Joe Krimko.—maybe his niece? –PG
Wow. That’s a lot of great information, whether you agree or not. . No one really bothers to dig like you do to get the facts. Thanks.
OhGee: You are engaging in hyperbole when you say that “men and women fighting addiction are apparently not welcome in Ocean Grove.” We don’t even know exactly what the Laingdon applicant has planned for their new use, but if a facility for addicts is what they have in mind, we certainly don’t know now how the citizens of OG feel about it.
But we may get some more comments now regarding the possibility that a residence for addicts is planned, and we would welcome more opinions on this hypothetical subject, butonly regarding the zoning issues mentioned in the article. Such opinions need to be relevant to zoning in Ocean Grove which is a fascinating topic. So please don’t change the subject.
Over two years ago we had a record-breaking comments section on Blogfinger when the subject of zoning for Mary’s Place came up. It is very interesting to read those comments. (link below)
https://blogfinger.net/2014/09/15/marys-place-receives-zoning-permission-to-build-9000-square-foot-facility-for-women-on-two-lots-at-24-main-avenue/
The Mary’s Place zoning decision was handled differently than this Laingdon application. Mary’s achievement was to convince the Neptune Zoning Officer to stretch the facts and to call it a “community shelter.” That project never had a public hearing at the ZBA. No variance was ever granted.
But this Laingdon project is different. It is being placed in the hands of the ZBA. It will be interesting to find out what the requested use variance is all about and how it is received at the hearing in February.
By the way, here is a portion of that 2014 article which discusses the category of “community shelters, residences:”
“But, as we reported, the State statutes supersede the Neptune zoning regulations. The state says that “Community residences, shelters, and adult family care homes are permitted uses in residential districts. (state statute #40:55D-66.1).”
“Under that heading comes this definition: “Community residences for the developmentally disabled, community shelters for victims of domestic violence, community residences for the terminally ill, community residences for persons with head injuries, and adult family care homes for elderly persons and physically disabled adults shall be a permitted use in all residential districts of a municipality, and the requirements therefore shall be the same as for single family dwelling units located within such districts. ”
“We asked Mr. Waterman to explain which of the above definitions would Mary’s Place satisfy in order to get zoning approval.
“He pointed to “community residences and shelters” as the main use categories and then singled out the “terminally ill” part as matching what is done at Mary’s Place. It should be noted that Mary’s Place accepts female clients who have all degrees of cancer. No medical treatments are conducted there at this time, although Mary’s Place officials speak of creating a place where western and eastern medicine will “compliment” each other.* Another high official at Neptune Township said that Mary’s Place was approved because it is a sort of “halfway house” as exist for “battered women.”
Guess it depends on the disease. Women fighting cancer are welcomed on Main Ave at Mary’s Place. Women (and men) fighting addiction are apparently not welcome here. The Star-Ledger had an article this week that 1,500 New Jersey souls were lost to heroin overdoses this past year. That is just one drug! How many additional thousands of New Jerseyians died, from pills, alcoholism, etc in 2016?
Exgrover, I think Shelley was simply stating that since she has been born here, she has seen much change & not just within the last few years or even for the last 30 years. I don’t think the comment was meant to be insulting.
Sorry that you are put off Exgrover, but I have seen the change over 60+ years. That’s just a fact. As a health care worker, I personally have no problem with a drug and alcohol rehab facility in a former hotel. Substance abuse is a huge issue, and there are far too few places people can go for help. That said, I am certainly open minded and more than willing to talk “issues.”
Actually, as someone who lived in the Grove for almost 30 years, I’ve always been put off by the comment ” I was born here…” Also, I find it interesting that the “YIMBY” or should I say the “Yes in my backyard” always surfaces, and always disapproves of other views regardless of merit.
The NIMBY description fails to take into account people’s genuine issues and questions about a variety of potential impacts. The second problem is that the term NIMBY is a disdainful put-down, which comes with an inbuilt sense of derision. So, calling your opposition NIMBY is a very weak argument.
And finally… during the dumping and creation of the mental health ghetto in OG and AP, NIMBY was tossed around a lot from the YIMBY’s – so who cares when you call people NIMBY’s—-it just means you’re too lazy to talk issues.
What’s past is prologue.
ex-grover
Actually as someone who was born here, I can tell you that “the character of Ocean Grove” has already been changed forever.
I also must say that I always find it interesting that while people may believe some things are needed, the “not in my backyard” opposition always surfaces.
ex-grover: Thank you for your elegant exposition of this situation. It will give perspective to many who are unaware of this history. Paul @Blogfinger
In the 80’s thru the 90’s Pandora’s box was flipped opened by NJ State and Monmouth County. With the closure of Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital and the forced dumping of patients into both Ocean Grove and Asbury Park they created a mental health ghetto using state grants—- public money as an incentive for boarding home operators to accept. It was no accident but a pre-conceived secret plan. This in turn created a nightmare for residents and the town. It was wholesale dumping without warning and changing the town’s character away from tourism. This nightmare lasted for a decade plus.
Pandora’s box was finally shut closed in the 90’s because the OGHA created and organized an aggressive awareness campaign along with residents, and eventually the Township Committee and Chamber came aboard. The OGHA spearheaded efforts by using the media: with appearances on CNBC, Monmouth Cablevision, letters to the editor, opinion pieces authored by the OGHA President in the NY Times and APP; along with testimony and documentation submitted before the state legislature.
Demanding public hearings in Neptune, the Grove, and elsewhere, the State was forced to take action and close the boarding homes. Afterward, OGHA successfully had OG zoned to single family as a protection for the future.
Now Pandora’s box has been re-opened by technical issues created by Mary’s Place and Neptune’s removal of single family zoning in OG. Blogfinger and others on this site voiced concern about the future of OG in regards to zoning and the future of the Grove.
I truly hope OG will NOT become a magnet for future establishments that will change the character of the Grove forever. This fight I fear will be harder than the past, because court decisions will be on the side of the Americans With Disability Act (ADA).
What’s past is prologue.
ex-grover
Jack. One could view this situation as a technical issue in terms of zoning ordinances. In the same way that the Mary’s Place issue was not about breast cancer, this matter should not be about addiction, unless there are those in power who actually care about how Grovers might feel about a detox. facility on Ocean Avenue; but I doubt that would be the case.
If a study shows that Neptune has a drug problem, and the study also shows a need for a drug rehabilitation facility, then it should be built in Neptune, NOT in Ocean Grove.
In Ocean Grove, we don’t need one.
But if one is built on Ocean Avenue, there are people with deep pockets all over the New York metropolitan area that would love to have their family member affected by this problem in a facility located directly on the Atlantic Ocean in the nicest town on the Jersey Shore.
It would be an instant success creating a need to expand.
It most likely would be a high priced facility that most Neptune residents could not afford.
Paul, you are performing a terrific service to us all by keeping these issues present and visible. Thank you.
Blogfinger readers should be advised that persons in drug and alcohol abuse programs are considered disabled and their civil rights are protected by the Americans with Disability Act (ADA.)
In 2015, the Asbury Park Press reported that Bradley Beach was unable to block a halfway house for addicts from opening on Ocean Avenue. The Borough fought it for two years before losing in court.
Here is a link:
http://www.app.com/story/news/local/neptune-wall/bradley-beach/2015/03/25/bradley-beach-halfway-house-okd/70456084/
Note: I learned subsequently that this Bradly Beach property could not be denied because it was perfect for the use–it was townhouses and even supplied off street parking. PG
This use cannot be allowed, period. A permitted use as a drug rehabilitation facility in Ocean Grove, especially at the beachfront would be an atrocity, not unlike the fiasco of dumping mental patients in hotels in the 1980’s and 1990’s.
Let’s galvanize the community and protest as necessary to being pressure on the Township to keep the structure as a hotel or single family residence.
I am shocked that there are not 50 or more comments on this subject which is vital to Ocean Grove’s survival as a resort.
Folks, now is the time to get involved. This is not the time for apathy!
This is beach front property. How can it not be extremely valuable as a family home? In any other town, a beach front lot would be snapped up right away.
Tear down that monstrosity hotel and build a beautiful Victorian. All these hotels are a disaster for the town. I wonder why they ever allowed them to be built in the first place. You don’t see hotels on or very near the beach all over the place in other beach towns in NJ (usually there is just one, if any). The CMA or whoever created the zoning for this town really did it a disservice.
Editor’s note: Devo: In 1939 there were 79 hotels in Ocean Grove. Probably most were built near the turn of the century. Back then there were huge throngs who came to OG because of the Camp Meeting’s activities. There are photographs from the late 1800’s showing large crowds on the beach for services–it looked like Coney Island at its peak. Those crowds mostly came by train and they needed places to stay.
Besides the hotels, there were many boarding houses.
Quite a few of those old hotels burned down over the years. Some had been torn down or converted to condominiums in recent years. If a hotel burns to the ground or is torn down, the lots should be used for single family houses—unless the Township allows condominiums to go there as on Ocean Pathway.
As for “snapping up” a beach front lot,” you cannot simply tear down a historic building in Ocean Grove due to its historic designation. Sometimes old historic buildings are left to rot and thus are demolished (“demolition by neglect”) as occurred with two old hotels on Ocean Pathway where the big condo building now sits.
But this hotel has been functioning as a hotel. It can be sold as a hotel and can continue as a hotel. But this request to the ZBA for a use variance is very interesting—stay tuned.
If a hotel is turned into a single family home (as with the Aurora which is now for sale,) then it can never be a hotel again. There are two small former hotels on Main Avenue which are now single family homes. Paul @Blogfinger
Maybe they do plan to use it as a hotel, but what is a “private hotel? ” If they seek a use variance, then we need to know what the “use” will be. If it is just a hotel, than why the variance?
I’m all in favor of protecting our historic legacy; following the law (eg RSIS,) the zoning, and the Master Plan,; blocking attempts to increase density and congestion; and demanding a reduction in parking problems, not an increase.
But, if owning a hotel is no longer a viable business model and if the a hotel cannot be turned into condos, then what is the hotel owner to do with his property?
I suppose he could turn it into a single family house, as has already happened, but it looks like no one is going to buy the Aurora (a hotel turned single family house.)
Maybe Green Acres would pay the owner and then the lot can be turned into a park. Any other ideas?
Editor’s Note: It is possible that the owner could get permission to tear down this building since it probably is not a real historic building. Then he could build a fine single family house from scratch. —-PG @Blogfinger
I purchased my property 34 years ago as my retreat away from the city. I still consider it a great place, but with all that is happening in Asbury Park and our own town I don’t know if I want to keep it. Now the thought of opening a drug and rehab center on the beach front is out of hand.
When I purchased it was safe for our children to be out late at night but no more.
We cannot allow this to happen, and people must show up in droves to meetings in the Township. We cannot wait for after the fact as we did when our taxes went up and New Jersey let out the crazies from Marlboro Mental Hospital.
Superb article Paul – I shudder to think what would happen to OG if it were not for Blogfinger,