AP dog beach is very successful and doesn’t interfere with any surfers or swimmers. Blogfinger photo. 5/4/22

Their parades are…well, different. Jean Bredin photo. Blogfinger.net

Asbury attracts lots of young people. We need to do better. Paul Goldfinger photo.

4th Avenue. A. Park. Paul Goldfinger photo. ©

By Paul Goldfinger, Editor Blogfinger.net  (Ocean Grove)  May 5, 2022.

Below is a list of some of the admirable features that characterize Asburytown, an urban environment.

It is not about Ocean Grove, our small town that  we have written glowingly and critiquely about in the past.

But inherent to the A. Park list is the contrast with the Grove, a place which will be different in many ways from A. Park, and you may inevitably decide that some of those Asburian characteristics are superior or inferior to those in Ocean Grove, or maybe there is no comparison.

a.  Many great restaurants.  Tourism is largely confined to their bar and food venues. They close Cookman for al fresco dining, but that is a good thing, and many Grovers enjoy that scene.  Eating outdoors is a healthy activity.

b. Alcohol is for sale.  Will marijuana be next on Cookman?  Well, isn’t more freedom better than less?

c. And she shall have music wherever she goes:  Music all over Asburytown including their porches. And they have a wide variety of music including rock and jazz.

d. Residential permit parking

e.  Paid parking using modern technology. They are active in creating needed parking.  More action and less talk..

f. They are diverse and they have cultural events—such as outdoors art.

g.  Many rental apartments where young residents can live and many condos with parking which can attract the high-end  and second home crowd.  And new housing for the poor is impressive near the train station.

h.  They have 40 churches, but all they do is theology and helping the poor.  You won’t find the names of those churches on the town’s banners and you won’t find any large religious events to draw thousands of tourists into their city.

i. Big events?  They have one giant music event which is held on the beach, not in their neighborhoods. And  that giant SeaHearNow Festival is in September.    They have a small market each Sunday in Kennedy Park.  They have no giant flea markets or craft markets because they don’t want or need them.

k. They continue  to  build more housing, and the architecture is wonderful.  They don’t pretend to be historic and they don’t want the ambience of a small town.

l.  They have services for the poor such as the Jersey Shore Rescue Mission. Give them their tired, their poor and any huddled masses needing help.

j. There is a newly restored theater for art house films.

k  Their Chamber of Commerce has a restaurant tour—-in April.   Public CC events are small in scale and aimed at residents.

l.  Governance:   Their mayor is elected.  Their City council says, “Join us for coffee with a councilperson.”  Did you ever get such an invitation in the Grove?

m. The transportation hub with buses and trains to connect them all over including to OG.

OK, they have problems as do we, but their factions work together and they are advancing.

This is not to put down Ocean Grove which is much different than the City of Asbury, but we can learn some things from them.

There is room for improvement in both towns.

For example, with respect to condos, that kind of housing is great for Asbury because A.Park is an urban environment and not on the historic register, and their condos get permission as long as parking is provided.  So if I lived there, I would consider that condo scene to be great.

But in the Grove, I am opposed to any new condos, especially if they violate RISS standards for off street parking.

Cast of Carousel—the song celebrates a small time event: