Will Grovers open their eyes to what’s going on in our town? Paul Goldfinger photo. 2021. Blogfinger.net. Tent Village. Ocean Grove.
By Paul Goldfinger, Editor. Blogfinger.net. March 17, 2025 re-post:
The BS meter in Ocean Grove just blew up after today’s Coaster front page story justifying $500,000 of public funds to the CMA for a “fitness project.”
Our State Senator Gopal is behind this, and he says, “..The goal was to support a project that would benefit the entire Ocean Grove community, Monmouth County, and the State as a whole…I am confident that the funds will be spent to achieve that objective.”
Really?
Blogfinger has learned from an anonymous source that Sen. Gopal has been a member (honorary) of the Camp Meeting Association Board of Trustees. Does this smell like something fishy, even before our new OG Pier has been built?
In his statement to the Coaster, Gopal did not mention this. Do you think he will contact us to deny this information? There are others in the Grove who are investigating this concern.
This is the fourth front-page article promoting the CMA’s projects in recent weeks in the Coaster, all containing glowing quotes from Michael Badger.
You would think that he controlled the paper and maybe wrote the articles himself. But the Coaster wouldn’t stoop that low…would it?
According to the Coastericans, Badger is quoted as saying, “In fiscal year 2023, the State appropriations act granted the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, the only religious non-profit, to receive funding.” If so, why did they get special treatment?
And here is another absurd Coaster quote which should make your head spin:
” Badger said he believes that while the state legislature has always recognized the uniqueness of the community created by Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, the community has long put the safety, recreation and beautification of the area first.”
What freakin’ “community” is he talking about?
This nonsense raises the question: How does the CMA acquire such influence in Neptune, Trenton, Asbury Park (Coaster,) and even Washington DC. (FEMA?)
They even have influence over the OGHOA: The President of that Groaner group went out of his way last week to personally kiss up to Badger. Details of this report remain to be released.
Back in 2014, after two denials by FEMA to use Federal funds to rebuild the OG boards, in an unprecedented chain of events, FEMA made a total about-face and gave public money to the CMA.
At the time Blogfinger supported all that, but now, in reviewing the history, that same fishy aroma rises to the surface. And Governor Christy and other NJ officials showed up in the Grove to claim credit.
Then we learn that the pier design was chosen without any consultation/approval with the OG public, the Historical Society of Ocean Grove, or the Neptune government including zoning officials or HPC.
Also there is the North End, where the CMA persuaded the Neptuners to pass over the Master Plan and change the zoning to benefit the CMA, Neptune, and the secretive OGNED “developers.”
The residential community in the Grove was ignored.
And even though Badger claims that he always has placed the “area’s safety , recreation and beatification first,” all the advantages described above were to benefit the CMA.
At Blogfinger we expect that this “fitness” project will be torn apart by Grovarian critics, and they are welcome to hit our “comment” button below. Yesterday we had nearly 1,000 “hits” on Blogfinger, mostly about these issues.
There may be something rotten in Denmark, but keep your eyes open in the Grove. The NJ Attorney General should investigate our concerns, and you may be hearing more about that fitness trail from other sources.
ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST OF FIORELLO: Act 2–“Gentleman Jimmy.” Can Gopal fit into these shoes?
EDITOR’S UPDATE : 3/17/25:
It looks like we will have a sidewalk along the boardwalk side of Ocean Avenue. But why do we need that? And who is paying? Senator Gopal? And what happened to that $500,000 Senator?
Also, the grass is starting to appear, but will that lawn succeed? This is not an ideal time to plant grass seeds.
Blogfinger at the proposed “fitness path” at the project now showing by the OG boardwalk. Paul Goldfinger photo 3/17/25. The lady with the dog did not think the grassy area would succeed. “It was tried before..”
OG beach March 17, 2025. It was cold and windy. Dog walkers are out. Blogfinger photo. Click once to enlarge.
But the CMA usually gets its way; they just follow the “Company Way:”
Robert Morse in How to Succeed in Business—
Here is “The Company Way” from the Broadway show:
David H. Fox,
Thank you for bringing this Plan to the attention of Ocean Grove residents.
The North End site is the most remote location at the lowest elevation in Ocean Grove. Very difficult to develop, except for single family homes.
This plan was designed to extend both Ocean Ave, and the Boardwalk in Ocean Grove, into Asbury Park to the North, and Bradley Beach to the South, providing easy access ‘In-and-out’
for heavy equipment to develop the North End property with a building the size of the new High Rise on the beach in Asbury Park.
The Beach Club could be on the Pavillion property.
In Neptune Township this is called ‘Historic Preservation.’
We really need to keep calling them out on things. The doubletalk is so obvious. They talk like politicians. Most of us see right thru them.
Truth is……. they’re desperate. They are trying to hang on to a sinking dingey as they float along in their closed, self involved bubble.
New people moving into this town from No. Jersey, Penna., NYC., etc. have NO idea what “CMA” is, nor do they care.
OG is not a “Deeply Religious Town” as stated in the newspaper article. It is a pleasant town, by the beach, and that’s all. The “Christian” association is there for those who want it, but it is no longer the majority of the residents.
“The path will run along the oceanfront from Bradley Beach to the Asbury Park border and will border the curbing.” Does this mean that persons going to the boardwalk will have to cross a lane of speeding bicycles and skate boards?