By Paul Goldfinger, Editor @ Blogfinger
A beautiful day enveloped the Grove, but it turned into a horror show for a steady stream of drivers rolling into town only to find no place to park.
It really is a disgrace that the Chamber of Commerce and the Camp Meeting allow this to happen. Not a single shuttle bus was in sight. We sat on our porch and saw the unhappy faces of those who are guests in this town who were desparately cruising in circles; who responded to the advertisements and then got here to find that the town was doing nothing to deal with the crowding.
It is reminiscent of 2015 when Belmar had to shut down after a massive overcrowding of cars occurred for their seafood festival. Below is a BF quote on that subject:
Consider Belmar: In 2015 they closed down the entire town when the number of cars exceeded the number of spaces during a seafood festival. But the official Belmar stance on parking, as stated by their mayor, is that they place the interests of their residents first.
Their online site says, “Belmar’s leadership and citizenry always understood that lack of parking is a serious problem here and that increases in the availability of parking must accompany any increased development.”
This is an embarrassment and a huge poke in the eye for the residents of OG who are literally prisoners in their own town. And the problems of parking and congestion are getting worse each year as the town of Ocean Grove gains in popularity.
When will the Neptune Township government realize that something needs to be done to protect the life styles of those Neptune taxpayers and citizens who reside in the Grove?
Enough is enough! We want our town back. Ocean Grove is not a theme park and it should not be a giant retail venue that sells shlock and $10.00 sandwiches to mobs of tourists. It is not equipped to cater to massive crowds. This town should feature small cultural events, not the New Jersey State Fair.
How can anybody take Ocean Grove seriously as a historic landmark when this sort of mega-event is featured over and over—-what we have is an identity crisis that needs fixing.
CONAL FOWKES AND EDDY DAVIS with music from Hannah and Her Sisters and other Woody Allen movies.
Shelley: It was the idea that you would dismiss a topic because it didn’t seem important enough for us to discuss. After all, as you point out, the importance of a topic would vary from person to person, and I like that we discuss all sorts of subjects on BF—-big and small.
For example, talking about mega-events like giant flea markets could result in a broader discussion about lifestyles in the Grove and could lead us to talk about issues such as what life might become in the future for those who live in this unique and peculiar town. New Jersey has over 500 towns and cities, and most of them are small towns (less than 15,000 people,) and these towns are all different and all evolve over time.
Your list of topics is very interesting because you have crystallized a concise set of some of the issues that need to be considered on Blogfinger and in public discourse in OG, and no one has actually done that before.
It might be helpful and productive for some of us to see it presented that way. Maybe others want to submit their lists of priorities. Thanks.
Paul
I guess everyone’s list is different. Mine would go something like this: 1) a renewed proliferation of absentee landlords/property owners; 2) degrading of the historical architecture of the community’s homes; 3) loss of air and light by permitting overdevelopment of individual lots; 4) more condominiums and 5) a shift in ideology from Ocean Grove as a quiet, reflective place (Ocean Grave as we used to be called) to just another shore party town.
Hard for me to believe that Ocean Grove can still be considered a National Historic Landmark given the many bad things that have happened to our historic architecture. A good percentage of the properties have been blown up and/or blown out to provide property owners with “more space” and “open concept” living.
But I digress. I just think that “mega events” like the craft show and flea markets are not the biggest issues those of us who love Ocean Grove have to face.
Editor’s note:
Just so we can be clear, please send us a list of “issues that those who love Ocean Grove have to face.”
No one is saying not to have events in town. However, if an organization is planning an event then they should make arrangements for visitors to be able to park out of town ( perhaps in the elementary school lot) & be bused in & out of town. This would make the event more pleasant for the visitors & us Grovers.
You can’t have it both ways. When you state “How can anybody take Ocean Grove seriously as a historic landmark when this sort of mega-event is featured over and over” you’re ignoring what comes along with being a National Historic Landmark (NHL).
As an example from the National Park Service website:
1) Publicly accessible NHLs may benefit from increased visitation through heritage tourism. National Historic Landmark properties are often featured in the National Park Service’s Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itineraries, a resource used by many travelers.
2) Technical Preservation Services (TPS), a program of the National Park Service, provides technical information and guidance on the care of historic buildings
3) Public and private organizations provide various grant opportunities. Grants are available through the Historic Preservation Fund.
If you want the NHL designation, then you have to be prepared for the advertising, publicity, tourism, funds and assistance that comes along with it. If you don’t want all that, then have the NHL designation removed.
I will add myself to the list of others who enjoy all the events OG has to offer. I may not be interested in all of them but I think they are good for our town.
Just Saying
Consider Rhinebeck, NY, a small town in the Hudson Valley where the population is smaller than Ocean Grove. It is a beautiful and classy place where mega flea markets, giant craft markets and car shows do not exist. They also are on the National Historic Register. But they are a “vibrant and creative” community that has events that nurture the hearts and souls of its citizens.
Chester, NJ is another small town like that. They used to have a moderate sized community flea market, but it was held in an empty lot and sponsored by the Lions Club. Guests would park in Chubb Park and get bused to the market. There was no adverse impact on the residents of the town and no parking problems. They had horse shows, antique shows, a theatre group, hay rides, apple picking and art shows.
They still have a craft show downtown, it was juried and very fine. Tourism was a small part of it all. The residents know what their town is.
Ocean Grove should do better.
It’s too bad that some Grovers get defensive over enjoying the mega-events. Sure they’re fun, and no one has suggested banning them all together. But the scales in the Grove are tipped heavily towards tourism—religious and secular, and the weight of all that is getting heavier.
These giant events should be reduced to one or two a year. Don’t forget we also have the CMA mega-events and Chamber events downtown. The latter just create smoke; what is the purpose of those car shows?
The “community” of Ocean Grove, consisting of those who actually live here, needs to nurture the idea that we are a small town with its own historic, artistic and family cultures and life-styles.
This “community” is getting drowned out by those who view Ocean Grove purely as a backdrop for tourism, financial opportunities, and commercialism—designed primarily to entertain outsiders.
We the residents of the Grove are unfocused and invisible to those forces. We can do better for our town.
Don’t be surprised ….there was no parking south of main.
My Grandsons and I had a Great Time at the flea market. we LOVE it!
Town was a congested zoo. I can only imagine that if there were an emergency the fire trucks would just have to plough through it all, cars and all, or not respond. And many, many people were looking for “handicap parking”. How mean to invite people to your town, they drive an hour to get here, and there’s NO HANDICAP SPOTS! While crossing the street in town several cars asked where it was. What’s up with that?! And why can’t they do what Avon did this summer? Park one of those electronic signs on wheels at the gates that says: TOWN FULL. NO PARKING
Today was a great day for Pegi and I – loads of fun. We had some friends arrive Friday night. There was plenty of parking for them (we live in the mountains).
Friday night was dinner and a movie at home. On Saturday, after breakfast, we all spent about 3 hours at the flea market. The girls shopped , the guys ate and the weather was amazing!
We headed back to our house – some napped on the porch – others watched a movie. For dinner – we walked to the Asbury Oyster Fest. Another nice event.
I realize its not everyones cup of tea but I like the flea market. A good time to get a head start on Christmas shopping, gift buying or buying something big or small that you “have to have”. We always see a bunch of people we know and chat. Its a fun day.
I would be surpised to hear that there was no parking south of main. I think some people are
unaware or overly optimistic when they look for parking north of main.
Issues on Ocean Pathway as flea market vendors pack up. I witnessed one motor vehicle accident. I observed that multiple vendors had parked their large SUVs on the residential sidewalks including one in front of my house. This individual pulled his large SUV up on my sidewalk running over the curb, my irrigation and new slate sidewalk. The vehicle owner stated that he was told he could park on the sidewalk by the Neptune Police- something that sounds doubtful to me.
I called NTPD on their non-emergency number, and related these events to the Watch Commander who confirmed that vehicles are not authorized to park on residential sidewalks during the flea market.
Personally, the flea markets and craft show are something I love, in addition to the beach of course. I just don’t move my car – not unlike like the rest of the summer. At least let this resident have a little fun.
Thank you for taking a continuing stand on this important issue.