Specter of eminent domain looms over Beachfront So.

Specter of eminent domain looms over Beachfront So.
Mayor assures residents condemnation is 'off the table'
BY KENNY WALTER Staff Writer
Tensions spilled over at a meeting of Long Branch officials and residents of the Beachfront South (BFS) redevelopment zone last week as city officials attempted to break an impasse and move plans for the zone forward.

Planner Pratap Talwar delivered a threehour presentation on the vision for the Beachfront South redevelopment on Aug. 19, stressing that there are several options on the table including residents being able to remain in their homes.

Present were Mayor Adam Schneider, council members Mary Jane Celli and Brian Unger, Business Administrator Howard Woolley Jr. and Assistant Planning Director Carl Turner, as well as about 35 BFS residents and property owners who had been notified of the meeting by certified mail.

The Beachfront South zone extends from Bath to Morris avenues, between Ocean Boulevard and Ocean Avenue.

A major point of contention between the city and residents is the specter of eminent domain, a tactic used by the city to condemn properties in previous redevelopment zones.

Many residents, shouting over each other, called for the city to adopt a measure that would ban the use of eminent domain in the zone.

"The eminent domain issue is off the table," Schneider said. "We're not going to use it.

"At the end of this process there will not be eminent domain," he added. "Even if this process falls apart."

Schneider defended his word to the crowd, who were vocally skeptical of Schneider's word.

"I've been tape-recorded, how much clearer can I be?" he asked. "You can all call me a liar; it's been done before."

Talwar chimed in that eminent domain is off the table in the area.

"This process is proof that the city wants to find a way out of eminent domain in Beachfront South," he said.

Residents remained skeptical though, as Unger asked them with a show of hands to indicate how many of them wanted an ordinance banning eminent domain. Virtually every hand in the room shot up.

Talwar explained to the residents just what the redevelopment zone they are located in means.

He said that residents would be allowed to redevelop their properties as long as they maintain the same use and structures on the same footprints. Officials also stated that variances of any kind are not allowed in redevelopment zones.

One problem that the 36 privately owned properties present is that many lots in the zone are long and narrow, making them difficult to develop under a cohesive plan.

"This was the problem that the redevelopment plan was trying to answer," Talwar said.

Talwar went into the history of the neighborhood, citing zoning differences in 1985 and 1990, where certain properties [70- 80 percent] were considered non-compliant.

He explained there are general overarching goals that encompass the entire oceanfront, the existing conditions on the ground are different in all parts of the beachfront and therefore plans for the revitalization for different districts are different.

"The goal of the redevelopment plan in Beachfront South is to show a zoning technique that would protect existing buildings that continue to change and would permit the maximization of development value respectful of properties that did want to change, respectful of environmental concerns of the state and respectful of the public goals of the redevelopment," he said.

"It is about making a great public waterfront and organizing cohesive developments for neighborhoods west of it," he said.

One of the challenges the city is faced with in the zone is the many narrow, adjoining lots with multiple owners. Talwar suggested a solution might be for the owners of the properties to sell the connecting properties to a single buyer.

The reason, he said, is that the long, narrow parcels are difficult to develop.

"The facts say that if long, narrow lots are put together, you can build more than if they remain on their own," Talwar said. "It is whatever makes sense for the property owners that wish to come together and develop."

"Basically, we are no longer going to assemble them to our power," Woolley said. "We put the pieces together, we can get a lot more value out of the pieces."

Talwar went on to say that the rules for redevelopment are designed to protect the homeowner in the area by not allowing variances for commercial use and to set restrictions on height and distance of buildings.

"They can be seen as restrictions, they also can be seen as value enhancers," he said. "I can tell you as a planner, the need is for some sort of rethinking of regulations."

Schneider agreed at the meeting that the redevelopment zone might help the property owners.

"I suspect in the end that is exactly what you're going to want," he said. "Things like tax abatements and other sorts of financing are only going to be done in a redevelopment zone."

"I'm afraid there is going to be 24 months of planning while these people have to pay their taxes," he said.

Schneider concluded at the end of the meeting that the city and residents are not that far off.

"You're probably a couple months away from getting this done," he said. "I think you're fairly close to coming up with a zoning plan."

For now, residents will choose whether or not to take Schneider at his word because he said he has no plans to take eminent domain off the table by way of an ordinance.

"The reason I don't want to drop it is I don't want to change the redevelopment designation now," he said. "I think it opens up to a lot of other problems."

Schneider did say that he would pass an ordinance eliminating eminent domain in the neighborhood once the planning process is complete.

Schneider also explained the reason why the city is planning to rezone the neighborhood in order to develop the land further.

"Right now the biggest problem is that the zoning we put in almost requires the use of eminent domain because it requires properties assemblage, which is very difficult to do," he said.

What the city hopes is to develop the land

that residents are willing to sell, while accommodating the residents who wish to remain in their homes.

"If there was no eminent domain, it might be possible not to develop everything, but to develop some things," Talwar said.

"Property owners can make their own decisions now," Talwar said earlier.

"The plan doesn't say anywhere that all the buildings have to be torn down to make a big building."

When asked about potential developers, Woolley said there are currently no talks with developers about the zone, and that officials are not sure how the adjoining properties would be combined.

Some residents however said that the redevelopment zone designation is hindering them in the pursuit to sell their homes.

"When a buyer comes along, you say the mayor says it's off the table, a buyer is not going to buy into that," BFS resident Diana Multare said.

While not all the residents were pleased with the city, some were pleased with at least the opportunity to listen to the presentation.

"I think the plan here tonight helps us immensely," one resident said.

Another concern for Schneider is the use of variances becoming an issue in the area if the redevelopment tag is lifted.

"If we were to drop it now without changing the zone, there are commercial properties in there that would have a very legitimate argument that we could expand now and have a credible argument," he said. "I don't think that's good for the neighborhood, I don't think it's good for the city."

As part of the discussion on eminent domain and the redevelopment zone, the presentation listed other concerns of the stakeholders such as open space, buffer zones and tax incentives.

Among the graphs presented was a look at each stakeholder's current goals for their land, which included some who wanted to remain the same, some who wanted to redevelop, and some who wanted to sell their property.

The two-block neighborhood currently contains 324 housing units, with 300 of those units located in two apartment towers situated on just a third of the land.

Talwar presented three hypothetical situations for development, which range from adding 188 to 355 units.

The three scenarios take into account some residents keeping their homes while combining a varying number of lots of residents who may sell.

Contact Kenny Walter at

kwalter@gmnews.com


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