By Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger.
On January 24, local historian and advocate Kevin Chambers made a provocative comment while discussing the Aurora. He said,
“Does the Aurora have any real history to it than the style in which it was built? No, it doesn’t, and since there are many other houses of the same style in OG, the loss of the Aurora would not effect the community than if it was truly unique to OG.”
Surely some of you saw his comment and would like him to explain it. It seems to me that he is saying that we have two standards of “historic” regarding OG architecture: a truly historic structure and an old building that “doesn’t have any real history to it.” The subtext is that it would even be OK to demolish the Aurora.
I can recall attending the 2013 hearing for demolition of the 134 year old Whitfield Hotel when a strong case was made that the old building was of no significance in terms of its architecture or its history in the Grove. Historians and other experts spoke and concluded that it had “no style” and was a “useless mess.” Citizens present agreed as did the HPC, so that old building was torn down to give way to four “reproductions” on crowded undersized lots .
Historical significance of the old Whitfield Hotel
Although we can’t exactly compare the Aurora to the Whitfield, clearly there are times when old structures should not be saved.
So is Kevin correct about the Aurora? Should the new owner be permitted to demolish it and put up condominiums? We already have heard about the idea of remodeling the Aurora and converting the building to 4 modern, luxury condo’s. And then there is the idea to demolish and put up single family homes.
Wouldn’t it be great if one of those public servants who are on the Historic Preservation Commission had the courage to comment here and help educate the public about this subject, but don’t hold your breath.
So maybe some of you Grovers who are knowledgeable about historic preservation in our town would comment.
Jack Bredin did in 2016 when he wrote a letter to BF and said, “A few months ago, at the public portion of a Committee Meeting, an attorney advised the Committee that ‘A historic district is a detriment to development.’ ”
BOB DYLAN “The answer is blowin’ in the wind.”
Grover 13,
Some people think, that if the Town breaks their zoning laws for some developers, they should also break the law for everyone else.
Kevin thinks the Township should obey the Zoning laws equally for everyone.
Both thoughts are hateful to the Township Committee and their developer friends.
Jack Bredin, I’m just trying to figure out Kevin Chamber’s comments, as to what he thinks is the answer for this property. I know elected officials don’t care about the land use laws, but that is not what I want to know.
Grover 13,
What is so hard to understand, that some people expect elected officials to obey their own zoning and land use procedures.
The Aurora lot will legally accommodate one or two single family houses.
Kevin, I’ve read your comments here and I’m not sure what you think should happen. Should it stay, as a single family historic structure (as it is), be torn down and replaced by 4 new repro houses, or made into condos?
I’m not debating the zoning violations brought on by Neptune; I’m just against tearing down a historic structure in a National Historic Site, whether or not it has any redeeming value beyond architecture.
Whether or not someone important lived there or something important happened there, it has historical value due to architecture and age. It’s not a falling down building that attracts vagrants or crime like some of the other buildings that have been torn down.
While it may have been a “common” style elsewhere, a property of this size/style was and is quite unique to Ocean Grove. Might even have been(be)the largest multi-bedroom house in OG if not the area.
So one cannot ignore the town a property is in to consider it historic.
I myself think of it as one of OG’s landmark buildings. I would like to see it remain as grand as it now is.
The North End Condo Corridor is a FRAUD of zoning. There is not and can not be such a thing within a zoning plan for a community of non-conforming single family lots. Every argument used to permit any use but single family use for the Aurora is founded on false and illegal zoning. Any arguments that the Planner uses or the Attorney uses using Neptune’s existing illegal zoning is with the intent to commit a fraud against the court. The Township’s zoning for OG has been in violation of law since it went in front of the State RSIS Board in 1999. The law can only permit a single family use on this property. The owner can not argue inutility to receive a greater use than what is permitted for any other resident of a single family structure.
Further, this may be a large house for OG standards, but by square footage, it is not large compared to many homes in Monmouth County that are restricted to a single family use on much larger lots. The fact that Neptune has created zoning permitting the greatest density on lots that cannot meet State standards for even a single family use shows a total disregard for the lives of residents of this community and is not a reason to violate the law.
Kevin Chambers
This is how I would express it. See above.
Taxed Without Representation
In my opinion, what makes The Aurora a historic building is the scale, beauty, and increasing rarity in Neptune Grove. Its location in the North End condo corridor further boosts it’s importance. The homes built in place of the Whitfield wouldn’t qualify as historic even if the four past Presidents moved in. The Aurora is the real Ocean Grove deal and deserves our protection!
Historic preservation is PRESERVE not replace because it’s inconvenient.
Soon we will hear bells – fire bells.
The “North End condo corridor” is historic for March fires destroying “buildings under renovation” and taking out nearby homes in the process:
Manchester, 25 Ocean Pathway
Surf Avenue condo’s: 27 Surf
Warrington, 20 Lake
If I lived near the Aurora I’d be scared.
I agree with Kevin Chambers’ analysis. The Aurora was built to the standards of the day as a seasonal hotel. Long corridors with smallish sleeping chambers, bathrooms shared with strangers, and meals eaten communally. The photos which accompanied the on-line listing did not particularly show an interior with any remarkable architectural detail, no gleaming woodwork, no handsome fireplaces. Rather it resembles the type of rooming house which was commonplace at the Jersey Shore at that time.
However, it is remarkable for its sheer size and the fact that it has survived. It is likely full of lead paint, crumbling plumbing and obsolete electrical wiring, and the the air conditioning and heating systems leave something to be desired.
Sadly, it is a money pit and few would be interested in taking on such a project or have the financial resources to do so.
Very few buildings in Ocean Grove are truly “historically important”, as many might argue. However, the very character of our town (the “Historic District,” as it were) emerges from a synergy of these individual structures. Each time we lose a thread of our original fabric I am reminded of John Donne’s “No Man is An Island” (yes, it’s somewhat contrived, but please think ‘church bells’ and ‘houses’):
No man is an island,
Entire of itself,
Every man is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thy friend’s
Or of thine own were:
Any man’s death diminishes me,
Because I am involved in mankind,
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
It tolls for thee.
In my opinion, what makes The Aurora a historic building is the scale, beauty, and increasing rarity in Neptune Grove. Its location in the North End condo corridor further boosts it’s importance. The homes built in place of the Whitfield wouldn’t qualify as historic even if the four past Presidents moved in. The Aurora is the real Ocean Grove deal and deserves our protection!
To try to be more clear about the Aurora. There are different things making a structure historic. The people who were associated with it, if something important happened in the structure, and the structure itself. Nothing of historic importance is associated with the Aurora nor is there any person of historic importance who owned or lived there, therefore that only leaves the style of the building.
If this building receives condo approval, what will happen is what has happened to all the other hotels that argued that they must be preserved because they were historic. The entire interior will be gutted destroying any historic relevance to the interior structure. New siding, new windows and new doors will replace originals. The Balloon framing will be replaced.to bring the building up to code. So in other words a new building will replace what was historic and what we have in the community is a new condo building without any historic significance.
All of this will be created by a planner and a township attorney using your tax dollars in violation of law and in contempt of a court order not to protect the community but for the benefit of a greedy builder.
Since the Aurora is going to be demolished through new construction, lets instead have what legal zoning demands and what only legal zoning permits, a single family house.
Kevin Chambers
Very appropriate music (“Blowing in the Wind”) to accompany the precedent this could establish. We can not sustain more condos. Large single-family homes and inns are vulnerable to condo developers. One would hope O.G. Homeowners Assn. would recognize these two facts and adopt appropriate policies adhering to the Master Plan and preserving our Historic District.