Residents question Pier Village II tax break
Taxes on upscale project to be phased in over five years
BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer

LONG BRANCH - Some Long Branch residents protested a measure adopted by council last week that provides a tax break to the developers of a luxury redevelopment project at Pier Village.

Council voted 4-1 to approve ordinance 40-07 at the Oct. 23 municipal meeting, approving a five-year tax abatement for an upscale residential and retail project in the second phase of the Pier Village redevelopment zone.

"Why are you giving them an abatement for Pier Village II?" Ocean Avenue resident Bill McLaughlin asked at the meeting. "They made a great profit [on Pier Village I]. It seems like the developer has you in their pockets," he said.

Ocean Boulevard resident Michelle Bobrow added, "You have already encouraged business. They do not need an incentive to come in and make money anymore."

The ordinance calls for the real estate taxes on the second phase of the Pier Village project to be phased in over a fiveyear period.

In the first full tax year after completion of the project, the developer will pay full taxes on the land and will not be required to pay any taxes on improvements or buildings constructed at the site, according to the ordinance.

Starting in the second year, 20 percent of the taxes will be paid by the developer. Taxes will then continue to be phased in at 20 percent increments until the developer pays 100 percent of taxes on the project in the sixth tax year, according to the ordinance.

"Will we benefit at all from this abatement?" Broadway resident Kevin Brown asked at the meeting. "As much as there seems to be some great benefits, you have to realize that many residents got hit really hard with taxes."

City Attorney James Aaron explained at the meeting that the land at Pier Village II will always be taxed at full value.

"In the second year, you get 20 percent [of taxes] of the improvements on the property," Aaron said. "This is the shortest of tax abatements permitted in the state."

The city will be receiving a profit from the start of the project, Aaron added.

Ocean Boulevard resident Harold Bobrow asked council for the estimated dollar amount of taxes being abated.

When council could not answer the question, Bobrow said, "If I could just reiterate, you are going to be voting on an ordinance based on an abatement ... without knowing the total amount being abated."

Jeffery A. Nadell, assistant to the mayor, had explained at a previous meeting that the city is contractually obligated to enter a tax abatement with developer Pier Village Applied LWAG based on a contract signed in 2000.

"It was an incentive," Nadell said, explaining that at the time, developers were not looking to construct projects along a rundown oceanfront in the city. The already completed Pier Village project was previously abated.

McLaughlin asked council why they agreed to the terms in the contact.

"How can you make a contract when you don't know what is going to happen four years later?" McLaughlin asked.

Before voting in favor of the ordinance, Councilman David G. Brown said he listened to the concerns from the residents.

"This is a continuing phase," Brown said. "It is based on the original plan."

Council President Michael DeStefano also voted to approve the ordinance and said, "The property is assessed at 100 percent. In essence, it is in not being harmed and not losing revenue."

Council members Anthony Giordano and Mary Jane Celli also voted yes, while Councilman Brain Unger was the lone no vote on the measure.

Unger did not comment at the meeting on why he voted against the ordinance.

Marine Terrace resident Bill Nordahl said at the meeting that the city should have included an affordable housing obligation in the contract with the Pier Village developer.

"Has anyone bargained with the developer for a significant number of affordable units?" Nordahl asked. "The city could have used its bargaining power. The city could have said that with the abatement, we expect something in return.

"We tore down a lot of housing for lowand really low-income people and we haven't replaced it," he continued. "I think the city failed to do its job."

Plans for Pier Village II call for the construction of approximately 242 residential units and 3,800 square feet of commercial space on 6 acres of oceanfront land between Morris Avenue and Laird Street.

The developer has already completed an estimated $100 million mixed-use project in the first phase on a 10-acre tract spanning from Laird Street to Melrose Terrace.