Back on track on boardwalk
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 04/10/06
The Asbury Park City Council approved an agreement last week that
establishes timetables and financial commitments by the oceanfront
redevelopers for repairs and renovations to the boardwalk's historic
buildings and pavilions.
The agreement, whose complete terms have yet to be made public, is
certain to provide ammunition for those displeased with the manner in
which the agreement was reached and the snail's pace with which
renovations have proceeded. But if there are no surprises to be found
in the fine print, the agreement should get the oceanfront portion of
the project moving again.
With little fanfare and minimal public notice, the agreement was
approved by a resolution of the council at Wednesday's regular
meeting. Had the agreement been done by ordinance, as was the case
with the original redevelopers' agreement in 2002, a public hearing
would have been required. That would have given residents and other
interested parties an opportunity to study and comment on the terms
of the agreement a process that could have yielded a better result
for the city.
The key provisions of the agreement were outlined in a PowerPoint
presentation at Wednesday's meeting. Asbury Partners, the
redeveloper, agreed to begin work immediately on stabilizing and
renovating portions of Convention Hall and Paramount Theater, the
Casino, the Fifth Avenue pavilion and the power plant.
New roofs on the Casino arcade and carousel and the power plant must
be completed by June 2007. Window replacements and repairs to the
Convention Hall arcade entrances and storefront interiors and
exteriors must be completed by May 2007. Renovation designs for the
interior and exterior of Convention Hall, Casino arcade and carousel,
and the power plant must be completed by September 2007. Asbury
Partners also will renovate the first floor of the Fifth Avenue
pavilion, which houses Howard Johnson's restaurant, by June 2007, and
has agreed to restore the Arthur Pryor Band Shell.
The agreement commits Asbury Partners to investing $6 million in the
various projects over the next two years. And it establishes a
binding process for holding Asbury Partners accountable should it
fail to meet the agreed-upon deadlines.
It could be argued that Asbury Partners should have been required to
make a more substantial financial commitment over the next two years.
But if it fully complies with the terms of the agreement, it will put
the oceanfront redevelopment back on course and help instill renewed
confidence in Asbury Park on the part of potential investors.
In the meantime, Asbury Partners should dust off the architectural
renderings of the retail-entertainment zone done by SOSH Architects
in 2003, and use them as the basis for a coherent master plan for the
boardwalk's anchors, five pavilions and adjacent properties. At the
same time, it should engage the public, commercial developers and
planners in a discussion of what constitutes the most sensible mix of
retail and entertainment businesses for the oceanfront area.
The Casino, which is the focal point for the southern portion of the
project, holds the key to the success of the commercial portion of
the project. Asbury Partners must find an experienced, credible
developer who can help transform that portion of the redevelopment
area into something magical something that will serve as a magnet
for other investors and set the tone for the entire oceanfront one
in harmony with SOSH's vision.
The oceanfront project must be viewed as a whole. It should not be
allowed to proceed piecemeal. Architecturally, it should all work
together. We have seen no recent evidence that Asbury Partners is
thinking along those lines.
We will reserve final judgment on whether the agreement was flawed
until we are privy to its fine print and have followed the progress
of the renovations. But the PowerPoint presentation strongly suggests
the agreement will finally get the oceanfront project out of neutral
and into gear.
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