July 4, 2022. Ocean Grove.
Paul Goldfinger, MD, Editor Blogfinger.net
This car was parking in front of my house at noon today, July 4, 2022. It arrived within 30 seconds of the person who was leaving that spot. Parking on this holiday weekend was very precious.
A young woman emerged. She asked me if she did a good job parking.
She said that she was going to be late for her “shift” at TAKA, the elegant Japanese restaurant on Cookman Avenue in Asbury Park. She told me that her employer is expecting 300 diners today. Then she smiled as she walked away.
We live at the corner of Mt. Hermon Way and Delaware, so we are quite aware of the parkers who seek out spaces in the Grove in order to work or partake over the bridge. We are told that employers over there tell their workers to park in the Grove: it’s convenient and free.
By 9:30 pm that car was still there, and I headed upstairs.
This problem can be solved by placing metered parking wherever interlopers tend to park. Of course, the technology will have to exempt residents from paying for those spaces. Or residential stickers could help as well.
Of course, our” representative governance” in Neptune and our good neighbors at the Camp Meeting Association are not interested in our problems. Both marched on Main Avenue in the parade. And they were smiling at the Grovarian residents who waved and smiled back.
So the question for you Grovers is: Do you have any pride that would cause you to stand up and demand that something be done about how we-the-people are being neglected?
Meanwhile our town is in a state of decline, even though you may not think so.
We had two neighbors, a middle aged couple, college professors. They had lived in the Grove for many years, but they finally left a few years ago. Why? Mostly because they had enough frustration and disgust over parking.
Another neighbor moved away with his family for the same reason. He got tired of watching his wife, an ICU nurse, struggle to find parking when she got home.
Of all the variables where one lives, one’s life-style is the most important.
VIKKI CARR:
IT’S THE LAW.
A restaurant or any other business must provide on site parking,
or in the alternative, at some other Private off site location for their employees and their customers.
But, they CANNOT avoid this requirement by expanding their ‘Parking Lot’ into PUBLIC STREETS.
And, some people wonder why we have such little parking for
OUR RESIDENTS.
The AP and OG Mayor and Council should resign.
Jack Bredin
There’s an old saying, fool me once shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. It seems that Neptune has been playing Ocean Grovers for fools over the years and since OG home owners continue to fall for their dishonest promises there is no reason for Neptune not to continue treating OG residents as fools, because they have proven Neptune right.
Beaches: My post did not distinguish between 2nd homers, renters and year-rounders. I think all residents should benefit from any solution to parking distress.
As for my two examples of residents leaving over parking, I did not fabricate their reasons for leaving. They told me that parking was a major factor in their decision. As for me, the frustration has increased substantially because the problem has increased.
I have no information regarding what you said about why some Grovers are selling now. But if you add up all the factors, I suspect that parking may be an important issue for some. And for those who choose to stay here, even though they may not leave because of parking, most would welcome a solution.
Two points:
1) With regard to ” the technology will have to exempt residents from paying for those spaces.” What about people who own 2nd homes here and pay taxes? Or seasonal renters? The parking problem occurs during the summer – when the 2nd home owners and season-long renters are here. So only year round residents would be exempt under this scenario?
2) With regard to “Mostly because they had enough frustration and disgust over parking”. I completely disagree with that. Speak to any realtor in the area and they’ll tell you that the primary reason people are leaving is the extraordinary increase in the housing prices. A house 8 blocks from the beach would cost $250-300K in 2016. Those houses are now selling for more than double the purchase price. So whiie parking may be one of the reasons, it’s a long way from the primary reason.