Clock ticking for owner of boarded-up building
Must begin shoring up structure on Main St. by Nov. 20
BY SUE MORGAN
Staff Writer

EATONTOWN - The owner of a shuttered Main Street grocery has less than two weeks to start salvaging her Main Street building or face its demise.

By Nov. 20, Hwee Lan Han, the owner of the boarded-up structure at 28-32 Main Street, must have construction crews on that site to begin shoring up, according to a court order issued last month by a state Superior Court Alexander D. Lehrer.

The latest deadline for Han to begin repairs to the dilapidated, two-story building, which Eatontown officials have been pushing to have torn down in the interest of public safety, was imposed after attorneys for both sides attempted to settle the matter in the state's Chancery Division in Freehold in mid-October.

Under the entity named Excel International Inc., of which Han is a principal, the building housed the Oriental Food Store, the Seoul Gift Shop, and several upstairs apartments until a borough construction official ordered it vacated due to its compromised infrastructure in June 2005.

Should Han fail to begin the needed repairs, which include reinforcing walls and floors, by Nov. 20, the municipality will proceed with its demolition, plans according to Borough Attorney Gene Anthony.

"If they miss the date, the building comes down," Anthony said.

As of Friday, Bob Stetz of T&M Associates, the borough's engineering firm, was still waiting for Han's architect to answer questions about drawings submitted to town hall earlier that outline how the building could be salvaged, Anthony said in an interview.

Those plans, submitted by Leonard Martelli, Red Bank-based architect hired by Han, have so far not been satisfactory to Stetz and to the borough, Anthony said.

"The plans are going back and forth between the borough engineer and Excel's architect," he said.

Ron Gasiorowski, the attorney representing Han's interests, has said previously that if his client can obtain the necessary permits to allow work crews into the premises, a licensed contractor and a structural engineer are prepared to start construction on the building which municipal officials contend is in imminent danger of collapsing.

Gasiorowski, of Red Bank, could not be reached for comment by press time.

Martelli has studied the structure's interior and disagrees with Stetz and the borough that the building could fall down without warning.

Even if Han does start shoring up her property, she must still provide borough officials with final plans for its complete rehabilitation by Jan. 15, which is 90 days from the date in mid-October when Lehrer first issued his court order, Anthony said.

Situated at the corner of Main and West streets, Han's building stands in the borough's downtown district fronting a portion of state Highway 35 that travels through the town.

The structure, also located in the town's designated redevelopment zone, has been boarded-up and fenced in since mid-July after Han failed to comply with a series of municipal orders to repair its interior and exterior.

Though the building is in a redevelopment zone, Anthony, Mayor Gerald J. Tarantolo and other borough officials have stated that the location has nothing to do with the desire to see it gone.

To pay for the anticipated construction and rehabilitation, Han deposited $50,000 into an escrow account with Gasiorowski's firm late last summer.

About $5,000 from that account went to pay Martelli to draw up the architectural plans, Gasiorowski has said.

Just days after the structure was boarded-up, at the borough's expense, the Borough Council awarded a $47,500 emergency contract to Mazza Demolition of Tinton Falls to raze the building once an environmental impact study was conducted by a subcontractor and the proper demolition permits obtained.

A $27,500 environmental study conducted by a Mazza subcontractor revealed asbestos, in the building's walls, flooring, and under a roof-all of which would have to be removed in compliance with New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) before razing.

After the building was first vacated, a rat infestation followed in summer 2005, officials said. The resulting extermination was also carried out at the expense of the borough.

At about that time, Lehrer issued his first court order barring anyone from occupying the building.

To recover the costs of the extermination, boarding up, environmental studies and demolition, the borough also has a lien on Han's interest in the property, Tarantolo has said.