Below, you'll find the text to an email that I just received from Hugh R.
Lamle, President
M. D. Sass Investors Services, Inc. in response to an email I sent to him.
His comments are within the quotation marks as answers to my questions.
Dear Mr. Pitzer:
Below, I have inserted comments related to each of your concerns. I appreciate
your
concerns, but must respectfully disagree with your conclusions about the
progress we are
making and its pace. Please pardon the informality of this response.
All the best,
Hugh
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:] ?
Sent: Tuesday, August 22, 2006 3:34 PM?
To: MDSass?
Subject: question for Hugh R. Lamle about Asbury Partners progress
Dear Mr. Lamle,
Greetings.
I'm a resident of Asbury Park. I love my city, but I'm very dismayed about the
slow rate of
progress on some of your construction projects.
Specifically, I'm very upset about the appalling condition of several sites
that Asbury
Partners is in control of.
Take the block north of the Stone Pony. It has been a heap of rubble for years
now.
"This is where our rock crushing operation is set up. This is the largest
contiguously AP
owned, vacant, and centrally located property in the WRZ where we can set up
such an
operation. The product of the crushing operation is a recycled material that we
use in
paving the streets. This is a sustainable practice that will ultimately help to
create smooth
driving surfaces which you will directly and frequently benefit from. Please
note that the
current land use and condition is not as unsightly as the vacant and decrepit
Albion Hotel
which stood on that block prior to the crushing operation. Crushing the
materials from the
old C8 building and using them for paving materials is the most environmentally
responsible use for these materials and trucking them off sight and then back
on sight
would be both expensive and noisy."
The next block over is no better.
When does Asbury Partners intend to clean these sites up?
"This will continue to be in operation for most of the infrastructure
construction phasing
which we expect to last at least two more years"
.
You must realize, we live here now. We deserve to live in an attractive
community. Also, if
you intend to attract future residents to the condos you are building, wouldn't
you want to
show the city in a better light?
"With any redevelopment on this scale, there is a period of time when the site
is under
construction and is not 100% aesthetically appealing. Keep in mind that the
waterfront was
blighted for several decades and was unsightly for most, if not all, of that
time."
The beach area should be an attractive area, but it's not. It looks like a war
zone.
"This is an unfortunate side affect of overhauling the existing infrastructure
systems that
is currently inadequate and antiquated,. We are investing $60 million to
completely rebuild
the infrastructure and, new road, landscaping etc. We know of no other project
of this size
that has progressed faster ."
I've seen many construction sites in my lifetime, and many of them make
attempts to
blend into their surroundings. That's not what I'm seeing in Asbury.
"I would imagine that most sites you're referring to aren't 56 acres and in an
active urban
environment. Single building sites can be more easily disguised by scaffolding
and
signage."
Honestly, I'm embarrassed to invite friends to come visit me in Asbury. I have
many
affluent friends in towns such as Montclair, New York and others, but I'm not
really proud
to show off the mess that Asbury Partners is creating.
"Although we sympathize with your desire to redevelop Asbury asap, please note
that the
"mess" is temporary, and it is a byproduct of the multi $100's of millions of
investment
that's being poured into your community at no direct economic expense to you or
your
neighbors. These conditions are always associated with large scale development
such as
the Meadowlands and Ground zero in NY."
The whole redevelopment project is progressing at a snail pace.
"Please consult Long Branch to compare our progress versus theirs (from a
redevelopment
commencement through initial construction phases perspective). You will find
that we are
moving at lightning pace when compared to comparable projects in the State."
I've seen other communities such as Edgewater, New Jersey accomplish much more
in a
fraction of the time that what's happening here.
"I'm not familiar with that project, although you should obviously understand
that the
context of Edgewater's redevelopment is very different given their proximity to
major
metro areas and the fact that it has never seen the extent of blight that
Asbury has."
I do understand that Asbury has been in a bad state for decades, but that is
not an excuse
for what is happening now.
"You can't simply ignore the past altogether though and the fact that we are
rebuilding the
entire electric and water systems."
If Asbury Partners intends to win the support of the people who live here now,
they really
need to make a greater effort.
"We're open to suggestions as to how to garner your support. We think we
deserve it for
the wonderful environment we are creating at a very fast pace compared to every
other
project of its scale."
If possible, I'd like to request that you provide me with a timetable for your
redevelopment
project, and specifically I'd like to know when you intend to clean up the mess
you are
creating.
"Again, we sympathize with your sense of urgency for the area's redevelopment,
but we
don't feel it is appropriate to use such a tone to describe the temporary side
affects of
redevelopment related construction. We are progressing as fast as possible and
are not
prepared to provide firm timetables since we can not get firm timetables from
all the state
and city agencies that must approve each phase of the project."
"This is our estimated timeline for redevelopment but these are subject to
substantial
changes due to regulatory, environmental, economic and weather issues:
0. 2006/2007 Wesley Lake Phase 1 and North Beach Phase 1 construction
should be
completed, sites cleaned, units occupied.
0. Every 18-24 months, we expect that the next phases of these projects (4
for
Westminster and 5 for Paramount) should be completed. There will be continuous
construction during the buildout of these phases.
0. 2008 Metro Homes' Esperanza should be completed, site cleaned, units
occupied.
Similar to Wesley Lake and North Beach, subsequent phases of Metro's
construction
should be constructed fdsover 4, 18-24 month phases.
0. Roadway infrastructure will be built commensurately alongside the
residential
construction.
2007-2010 Oceanfront retail/entertainment/hotel construction timeframe.
Anticipated
completion in 2010 (based on current negotiations with prospective retail
developer)"
Hugh R. Lamle, President
M. D. Sass Investors Services, Inc.
1185 Ave of the Americas, 18th Floor
New York, NY 10036
Phone: 212 730 2000
Fax: 212 843 5949
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Company Web site: WWW.MDSass.com
Arubahouse web site www.arubahouse.com
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