OG civil war canon is aimed towards AP. Let’s turn it around to symbolize the betrayal by Ann Horan and her HOA gang of nine. Paul Goldfinger photo. ©

Editor’s note:   Some of you may have missed this piece when we posted it last month on Christmas Eve. It is about how the Home Groaners Association has taken the side of developers regarding RSIS. 

Moving this piece to the top is needed because the OGHOA is about to present a “forum” on this subject.  But they should not be moderating this forum because their main purpose is to defend their anti-Ocean Grove position regarding this topic. 

If the forum is ever held, keep in mind that an unbiased presentation is not possible under the auspices of this group who would back the conversion of old rooming houses and hotels into condos, and if you think that there are no more such buildings in town, here is one at 17 Embury Ave.  that so far has slipped under their radar.  I passed it today quite by accident.  Jan 21, 2016.  Ocean Grove, NJ

The Seacrest Manor is for sale at 17 Embury Ave. —-a choice location. Paul Goldfinger photo Jan 21, 2016  I told my wife never to put me into a place with the word “manor” in its name.

The below post was originally published on Dec. 24, 2015:

In a memo to its members the OGHOA President Ann Horan declared “The HOA supports the township’s effort to secure a Special Area Standard for Ocean Grove.”

In her long note, full of head-spinning irrelevances, Horan tries to create fear and confusion by discussing standards that have nothing to do with our current situation including sanitary sewers, yellow striped boxes, parking stalls , etc.  She says that enforcing the RSIS rules in OG would be “a disaster.” This outrageous and fearsome  characterization is based on absolutely nothing.

The truth is that the special area under discussion is only about off-street parking and street widths. The latter is not even an issue, because our street widths are pretty well set.

Not only is the HOA betraying historic Ocean Grove by this announcement, but they doubled down by sending a letter to the SIAB in Trenton explaining why it is essential that the new standard be adopted “in order to prevent a bad situation from becoming worse.”

The explanations by Horan in these two documents are outrageous and plain wrong. She can’t even get the date of last week’s meeting correct.

The people of Ocean Grove need to insist that the HOA do the right thing before we are inundated by more condominiums, townhouses, conversions to apartments, big buildings like Mary’s Place, etc.

Blogfinger has explained our position already to our readers pointing out that granting the requested exemption will open the doors to developers. We want the RSIS regulations to be retained for all structures in town except  for single family homes.  Horan doesn’t seem to understand what we are talking about.

The Editor’s note below regarding the position advocated by myself, Jack Bredin and Kevin Chambers sums up our views, which are opposite that of the HOA:

Editor’s Note:  Here is the “hook” regarding the RSIS rules.  If someone wants to put up a condo building with the RSIS standards in place, then it will be impossible for them to comply, because they would have to put the parking on their lot or lots. Since that would be impossible in most situations, then a single family house or an empty lot is the only option. 

Single family houses should get the exemption from the State because if someone wants to put up a single family house, there will be no room for the required driveway and parking. So the exemption for them would create a single family Victorian house with no driveway or garage, a situation that is not only historic but is very Grovey.  —-Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger

We know that this subject is a bit hard to understand, but here is another practical example, different from above, taken from the perspective of what the HOA and the Township are advocating:

Suppose the HOA/Township viewpoint is accepted by the SIAB, and the exemption is granted for every project in town. The next time a developer buys a derelict old inn, razes it, and proposes condos, they will be permitted to do so without having to supply any parking.

So all the people who live in that condo building will be looking for on-street parking along with their friends, party-goers, and relatives, resulting in reduced parking for residents and increased congestion for that neighborhood.  Every new multi-residential structure that is permitted will negatively impact our lifestyles and endanger our historic designations and and our town’s character.

It is as simple as that, so don’t be mesmerized by Ann Horan’s unbelievably disloyal and destructive position on behalf of the HOA as she stands shoulder to shoulder with the Neptune Township Committee, supporting their phony rationale for requesting the Special Area Parking Standards.

STUFFY SHMITT.  This song is about good ideas…something the Home Groaners  should find out about

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