Suit challenges blight label in Beachfront So.

Suit challenges blight label in Beachfront So.
Mayoral candidate wants designation lifted
BY KENNY WALTER Staff Writer

Robert Krebs Robert Krebs LONG BRANCH — Beachfront South resident Robert G. Krebs has filed a lawsuit challenging the city’s blight designation of his Ocean Avenue home.

Krebs, who is challenging incumbent Mayor Adam Schneider for the mayor’s office, confirmed this week that the suit was filed March 11 in state Superior Court in Freehold.

Krebs, whose platform includes eliminating the city’s redevelopment zones, explained that the suit should have no impact on his run for mayor.

“It shouldn’t affect my candidacy at all,” he said. “This is a separate issue, and I’m not looking for monetary damages.

“I just want to be taken out of the zone,” he added. “I am seeking to get my property out of the redevelopment zone.

“There is no dollar amount in the suit, so this particular suit is not for monetary damages.”

The complaint names the city, the mayor and the City Council, which acts as the city’s redevelopment authority, as plaintiffs

The suit seeks to overturn “an unconstitutional designation of private property as blighted” and seeks “damages and injunctive relief against the City and the Mayor of Long Branch for their refusal to vacate the designation of blighted despite its unconstitutionality for the purpose of depriving plaintiff of his rights under the United States and New Jersey Constitutions to enjoy and protect his private property free of being taken without just compensation.”

Peter Dickson, of Potter and Dickson, Princeton, is representing Krebs, while Robert Beckelman, of Greenbaum, Rowe, Smith & Davis, Woodbridge, is representing the city.

Neither attorney would comment last week, but Beckelman said the city is preparing a response, which is due by May 11, the same date as the municipal election.

The complaint challenges two actions by the City Council: an ordinance clarifying zoning regulations within the zone, and a resolution banning the use of eminent domain to take properties in the zone, which were adopted in January.

According to the complaint, Beachfront South became a redevelopment zone in 1996 and Krebs purchased his home in 2000, aware of the designation but unaware of its significance.

“Plaintiff was aware of the designation but was unaware of its consequences,” the complaint states.

According to the complaint, at no time during or prior to owning the house has Krebs’ home become a property “in need of redevelopment” and the residence is not blighted.

The complaint is critical of the city’s entire redevelopment plan.

“The city has pursued a series of unpopular redevelopment projects to significantly alter the character of the city, drive out moderate income residents and businesses, and make it more attractive to higher-income residents and upscale businesses,” the complaint states. “Most of the condemned properties have not been accurately ‘in need of redevelopment’ or ‘blighted.’ ”

The complaint cites the landmark Gallenthin v. Paulsboro decision, a case that was argued by Dickson’s law partner William Potter.

“In 2007, the Supreme Court of New Jersey held in Gallenthin Realty Development v. Paulsboro, that a municipality could not designate a property or area for redevelopment under the LRHL [Local Housing and Redevelopment Law] unless it met the definition of ‘blighted’ in the New Jersey Constitution,” the complaint states. “The Supreme Court held that N.J. Const. is the only source and a limitation on the redevelopment powers in the LRHL.

“The Gallenthin decision thus affirmed that owners of private property in New Jersey have a Constitutional right to own, protect and preserve their property from being taken for private redevelopment so long as the property is not blighted.”

The complaint also states that the city is not authorized to take the property.

“The city is using the authority under the LHRL to exercise control over properties in Beachfront South in a manner not authorized by the Blighted Area Clause of the New Jersey Constitution, which is intended to apply to and is limited to “the clearance, replanning, development or redevelopment of blighted areas shall be a public purpose and public use, for which private property may be taken or acquired,” the complaint states.

The complaint also cites another precedent-setting decision.

“The Harrison v. DeRose decision thus affirmed that owners of private property in New Jersey have a Constitutional right to own, protect and preserve their property from being taken for private redevelopment so long as the property is not blighted,” the complaint states.

The complaint also states that Krebs has been unable to improve his property because of constraints imposed by the redevelopment zoning regulations.

“Mr. Krebs pursued plans to develop a multifamily building he proposed to build as a replacement for the residence,” the complaint states. “He was unable to perform those contracts because the city will not vacate the redevelopment area designation.”

News of the suit follows a decision by the state Appellate Court that ruled earlier this month that the redevelopment ordinances in the city’s Broadway Arts district are invalid.

A three-judge panel released an unpublished opinion April 16 stating that the city’s 1996 designation for the zone does not meet the heightened standards put forth in Gallenthin v. Paulsboro. The suit was filed on behalf of three property owners in the zone.

Another challenge was brought by business owner Kevin Fister and partners, who filed a suit charging the city would not allow them to redevelop property in the Broadway-Gateway zone but had also failed to take the property, resulting in an “inverse condemnation.”

Last September, the city reached a settlement with some property owners in the MTOTSA (Marine Terrace, Ocean Terrace and Seaview Avenue) neighborhood of the Beachfront North Phase II redevelopment zone under which the city agreed not to use eminent domain to take the properties, and the property owners, who had battled the city for a decade, agreed not to seek punitive damages against the city.

BFS is one of six redevelopment zones, along with Beachfront North Phase II, Beachfront North Phase I, Hotel Campus, Broadway-Gateway and Broadway Corridor.