Signs of Rebirth Along the Shore By ANTOINETTE MARTIN
Published: April 17, 2005 Paramount Homes The first building at the Barcelona is to have 49 condos, priced from the $400,000's to beyond $1 million. Two more buildings are planned. ASBURY PARK EVEN on a gorgeous spring day, with the sun sparkling and the waves lapping leisurely against the shore, the beachfront in this long-depressed city looks forlorn. Only a few joggers might pass in an afternoon on the multimillion-dollar mile-long boardwalk installed last year. The fabulous but decrepit beachfront buildings stand alone, seemingly shunned, like crones at a bikini party. And yet the signs of rebirth are unmistakable too. "Hear that?" says Larry Fishman, who heads a company overseeing beachfront redevelopment, as he detects the sound of pile drivers on Ocean Avenue. "That's the sound of progress." The pile drivers are pounding at Paramount Homes' site on the northern end of the beach, where the first in a three-building complex to be called the Barcelona will rise. The building will house only 49 condos, priced from the mid-$400,000's to more than $1 million. But in a strong demonstration that people can believe in the Asbury Park yet to be, Paramount says it has put more than 2,000 people on a potential-buyers list since announcing the project last fall. "We get between 50 and 100 inquiries per day, from all over the world," said a Paramount sales and marketing executive, Carolyn Villani. "Some people want to buy 10 units, but since we will only build 157 units total, that wouldn't be fair." Ms. Villani said home shoppers are evidently buying into the resort-style living concept that Mr. Fishman's company, Asbury Partners, has shaped along with Asbury Park officials. "It is happening before the foundation has been poured," she exulted. At the other end of the beach, where Westminster Communities will build a group of Art-Deco-style town houses and flats over retail space, site preparation work is still under way. But more than 600 people have called and asked to be put on the list of potential buyers, the developer says. Metro Homes, which earlier this year became the last of three developers to win approval for residential construction, is still cleaning up its Ocean Avenue site opposite the central beach. A previous redeveloper left the hulking steel remains of his failed project on the site 16 years ago. Dean Marchetto, Metro's architect, is fine-tuning his design for two new towers with 224 condominium units and has added an undulating roof line meant to evoke the fanciful motion of sea breezes. The complex also has a new name. It will be called the Esperanza, at the suggestion of an Asbury Park schoolgirl who entered a Metro Homes contest. The buildings were originally to be called the Rising, after the Sept. 11 memorial album by Bruce Springsteen, who began building his following at the Stone Pony bar, which stands adjacent to the site. Mr. Springsteen "respectfully requested" the change, and Metro immediately moved to comply with his wishes. Asbury Partners, which bought the Stone Pony and all the entertainment structures on the beach, including the Convention Hall, the Paramount Theater and the Carousel building, has also been working to revitalize event programming and recruit retailers. A lineup of concerts, shows and festivals aimed at attracting families and adults has been assembled for every weekend of the summer season, Mr. Fishman said. Concertgoers and shoppers, however, will have to make their way around sidewalks and street corners that have been torn up by the $50 million reconstruction of city infrastructure by Asbury Partners, he noted. The city of Asbury Park insisted during negotiations with Asbury Partners that a complete infrastructure rehabilitation take place at the beginning of the redevelopment work: replacement of water mains, storm sewer reconstruction, new water quality treatment structures and an upgrade of all utilities. So the company agreed to begin what city officials say is the largest privately financed project for public benefit in New Jersey. Already, a new water main has been installed along 900 feet of Ocean Avenue. Right now, the pavement has been upheaved in a few spots, most notably over the famous "tunnel of love" passageway that ran under Ocean Avenue so pedestrians would not have to cross traffic going to and from the beach. Ocean Avenue itself will be completely rebuilt, but not for some time, Mr. Fishman said. Some rehab work is under way solely to provide a good launchpad for the summer season, he said. Inside a room at the empty convention hall, some local carpenters are at work creating new benches for the boardwalk. And 10 shop spaces at two pavilion buildings that were empty for three decades have been spruced up for temporary occupation by retailers. Eight of the 10 spaces were rented by mid-April to retailers: the Gertrude Hawk Chocolate Shop, a national chain; Manalapan-based Confetti's, which offers more than 90 flavors of ice cream and Italian ice; a full-menu ice cream parlor; a French bistro; a pizzeria; a bicycle and beach equipment rental shop; a sundries boutique; and a galleria to be operated by local Asbury Park entrepreneurs that will include an art gallery and souvenir shop. These seasonal retailers and food vendors will join a growing group of upscale restaurants and boutiques in downtown Asbury Park, where the city has been working to recruit entrepreneurs to invest. "Some smart people are moving in now," said Asbury's city manager, Terrence J. Reidy, "some people who can see what is coming." Mr. Fishman said, "The idea behind drawing people in right now is to have them come and witness the progress of this historic city." The developer said he would not at this moment recommend Asbury Park as a place for families with young children to live because of its spartan services and poor schools. These are a result of the municipal bankruptcy that came after the failed redevelopment effort of 1989. For the countless New Jerseyans with fond memories of childhood summers at the Asbury Park shore, however, and for those possibly interested in living in the revitalized city, it is high time to check the place out, Mr. Fishman urged. The long-term plan for the Asbury Park oceanfront calls for 450,000 square feet of entertainment and retail space along the beachfront, with a mix of seasonal and year-round shops and art and antiques galleries. But first the big beachfront buildings on what was once known as the Jewel of the Jersey Shore must be meticulously restored to historic landmark standards. "That is going to be a huge job that will take years," Mr. Fishman said. "But if you think about it, it is like polishing a jewel. There are no grander buildings anywhere." --- In AsburyPark@yahoogroups.com, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Must reading today in the Sunday New York Times ~ Larry Fishman slams Asbury > Park schools and services. REAL ESTATE | April 17, 2005 See links to > this and Part I of NYT Jersey section story on Cherokee - a reportedly $30 Mn > investor in AP on > http://www.restoreradio.com/ with the sound from this week's show featuring > live interviews with Asbury Park School District's decision makers in school > curriculum. > > Speak up - It's America!! > Maureen Nevin > Restore Radio 88.1FM - 4 Years on the Radio!! > Asbury Park's Own Live Talk Show > 601 Bangs Avenue > Listen 8 - 10 PM Thursdays on 88.1FM or > Listen Live or Later on the Web http://www.restoreradio.com/ > Call the show 732-775-0821 > Call me 732-774-0779 fax 502-0463 Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsburyPark/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
