1. The much-delayed Broadway drainage project could be completed by Memorial Day. So said Francis Paladino Saturday at the monthly meeting of the Ocean Grove Home Owners Association. This week, he said, the Township will begin installing the new drainage system intended to eliminate flooding along Broadway. Work will begin at the corner of Pilgrim Pathway and Broadway and will progress westward to Lawrence Avenue. They’ll then finish up with the section nearer Central Avenue and Fletcher Lake. Residents can expect portions of the north lane of Broadway to be blocked off during this construction. Eric Houghtaling, the Township committeeman who oversees public works, cautioned that the target date of Memorial Day can’t be guaranteed, “but the Township will push the contractor to have it done by then.”
2. The Ocean Grove Home Owners Association still has had no luck in discovering the identities of all the investors in WAVE, the company designated as developer of the hotel/residential complex planned for the North End. Joan Venezia, who chairs the OGHOA’s committee on the North End, said a member of her committee has asked the Camp Meeting Association for more information about this development company. So far, the only principals who’ve been named are Ocean Grove builders William and Paul Gannon. Venezia said her committee will continue to press for more information. The Camp Meeting, which owns the property, and WAVE (Wesley Atlantic Village Enterprises) are the project’s co-developers.
3. The Neptune Township School District will release its 2012 budget this coming week. School board member Laura Granelli says the $85 million budget will require no increase in property taxes. In fact, she said, the average house in Neptune, one assessed at $239,000, will see a $9 tax reduction.
4. Builder Mike Wilson got the Historic Preservation Commission’s permission Tuesday for a new house at 35 Embury Avenue. The previous house was declared unfit for habitation by the Township last year. Wilson, who is from Little Silver, bought the property, tore down the old building and plans to put a 2 ½ story residence in its place. The new house will have an all-wood front, vinyl on the other three sides and red brick pavers. Wilson said he wants to have the house completed within about four months of getting the building permits, and expects to have the foundation and frame done before the summer tourist season begins. The plans are identical to plans the HPC previously approved for a building that was to have been built at 24 Main Avenue but never was.
5. The HPC has also approved new work to be done at 4 Boardwalk — the place where Dorian’s restaurant used to be. It was damaged by Hurricane Irene and is now empty. The owner’s architect, Stephen Carlidge, said the owner wants to replace some small windows on the building’s east side, facing the ocean, with larger ones. “The potential to rent this space will be greater if it has bigger windows,” he said. The owner, he said, hopes to rent out the space for a season or two while he decides on longer-term plans for the building.
6. Neptune will hold a public hearing April 9 on its 2012 Township budget. People will be able to ask questions and make comments on the proposed budget at that time. For those who’d like to study up, the budget is posted on the Township website in two places: on the home page in the left-hand column and also on the Clerk’s page. Or, you can download it by going here: http://www.neptunetownship.org/upload/documents/2012Clerk/2012Budget.pdf
7. The application deadline has been extended for this year’s paint and rehab program for low and moderate income households in Neptune Township (including Ocean Grove). The new application deadline is March 30. For more information on this volunteer program — and on who is eligible — go here. And to read our previous article on the subject, go here.
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