City talks to local group about oceanfront plans Business administrator says city wants input from residents BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer LONG BRANCH - A city community group said it is making "headway" with the city after meeting with officials to discuss future plans of the oceanfront. Mayor Adam Schneider and city officials have met with the Long Branch Save Ocean Avenue committee on several occasions to talk about redevelopment plans of the city's boardwalk and Ocean Avenue, according to committee member, Bill McLaughlin. "The mayor reached out to us to discuss plans for the boardwalk and to show us what they want to do on Ocean Avenue," said McLaughlin of Ocean Avenue last week. "They are talking with us and listening to our ideas. They are taking input from us. "This is something they haven't done for the last 16 years," he said, adding, "We are making headway with them." City Business Administrator Howard H. Woolley said last week that the city is taking steps to work with residents as plans move forward on the redevelopment of the oceanfront. "We have been reaching out to various people and groups as a communications effort on our part to talk to people and get ideas," Woolley said. "The [Save Ocean Avenue] group was one of the groups we talked to," he said. The Save Ocean Avenue committee formed this summer after the city introduced a measure to open portions of Ocean Avenue to vehicular traffic. The 3.10 acres of roadway has been closed and used as recreational purposes for the past two decades. Schneider and council members voted to withdraw the measure after a group of residents, including McLaughlin, protested the plan. "The city is exploring options and asking us what we think," Dennis Sherman, an Ocean Boulevard resident and member of Save Ocean Avenue, said. "They have showed us a PowerPoint presentation on what they envision along the oceanfront. "We are giving them our input," he said, adding, "The city is being receptive at these meetings." Sherman said his group wants to see the boardwalk repaired or replaced in order to provide safety, recreational opportunities and beach access for the community. His group is also working with the city to keep Ocean Avenue as a recreational roadway and remain closed to vehicular traffic. Sherman said the group is going to continue to meet with the city to discuss aspects of the plans and did not want to comment on further details at this time. According to Woolley, constructing a new boardwalk is a priority in the city. "The mayor and council want to see a new boardwalk built as soon as possible," Woolley said. Plans call for developer K. Hovnanian of Middletown to fund the estimated $13 million boardwalk construction project as part of a developers agreement signed for the Beachfront South redevelopment project. "K. Hovnanian has designed the plans for the boardwalk," Woolley said. "Our present agreement is that they will build it for the ability to build the Beachfront South project. "K. Hovnanian is required to build the section of the boardwalk at Beachfront South," he said, adding, "It says they are contributing money to build the [the rest of the boardwalk] in the [developer's] agreement." Beachfront South is located on a 12- acre site that extends from Bath to Morris Avenues. The city is still in discussions with K. Hovnanian regarding the luxury condominium project planned for the Beachfront South site due to a decline in the state's real estate market, according to Woolley. "We are moving towards an agreement," Woolley said. "It has slowed down because of the housing market." The milelong boardwalk will be rebuilt from Brighton Avenue to just north of Morris Avenue, according to Woolley. Plans call for the boardwalk to be doubled in width and for a 6-foot grass buffer to be created between the boardwalk and the Ocean Avenue. There are also plans for three comfort stations and three access points to the beach to be included in the project. "It's a pretty expansive project," he said. "We want to see it done as quickly as possible." Woolley said he does not know when plans will be in place to begin the project, but he said that it will be completed within 18 months of the start of construction. The city has spent over $30,000 this year on repairs to the current boardwalk, including replacing the wooden boards. "We do repairs annually and we will do more next year," Woolley said.