Former waterslide site valued at $3.9 million
BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer

LONG BRANCH - A panel of retired judges has determined that the site of the former oceanfront waterslide and amusement park is worth $3.9million.

The 4-acre parcel of land onOceanAvenue was condemned by Long Branch officials in March 2001, and the city offered ownerWest of Pier Associates, comprised of the Cicalese family, $1.4million for the property.

Attorney Ronald S. Gasiorowski of Red Bank, who is representingWest of Pier, said his client was asking for approximately $7 million for the property.

"We chose to appear before three retired judges rather than a jury, and I respect their decision," Gasiorowski said last week.

"Obviously, I would have liked more, but this is what they came up with," he said, adding, "The eminent domain process in Long Branch has been extremely unfair to the property owners, includingmy client."

The arbitration panel, made up of three retired judges, Thomas F. Shebell Jr., Richard J.Williams and James D. Clyne, issued the ruling Dec. 14 after hearing testimony on the case at several court appearances in September.

Attorney Paul V. Fernicola of Red Bank, who represented the city in the case, said he was disappointed in the decision.

"I though itwas higher than it should be, but it is still a far cry from the [$7 million] they were asking for," Fernicola said last week.

Both parties in the case had agreed to use May 2002 as the date in determining the valuation of the property, according to the decision.

The subject property is an irregularshaped parcel of land located on the northwest corner of Ocean and Chelsea avenues in the city's PierVillage redevelopment zone, according to the decision.

The site, in May 2001, contained a total area of 3.94 acres or 171,626 square feet. It had 9,000 square feet of building, two inground pools and a water slide, all of which had not been used for years and was in a state of substantial disrepair, according to the decision.

The property was located in a RC-3 waterfront mix zone, directly across from the Atlantic Ocean, and had been formerly used as an arcade and amusement park.

Afire destroyed the city's oceanfront pier in June 1987,whichwas never rebuilt, and a few years later the amusement park closed, and its buildings and facilities fell into disrepair, according to the decision.

During the case, the city's expert, Hugh McGuire, selected six comparable sales to determine the value of the Cicalese property, all of which were located outside of the redevelopment zone, according to the decision.

The panel of judges chose a sale closest in time of distance to the Cicalese property to be theAugust 2001 sale fromSand Castle to ExcelsiorAlMare on Ocean Boulevard.

That property was 2.34 acres in a residential zone and a project had been approved at the site for the construction of 23 residential housing units.

The Excelsior Al Mare property sold for $1.5 million, which equates to $640,205 per acre, according to the decision.

"It was disappointing that [the panel of judges] relied on only one comparable sale," Fernicola said.

In 1996, the city of Long Branch determined that portions of the oceanfront were an area in need of redevelopment and established a redevelopment zone with five districts.

TheCicalese property fellwithin the Pier Village redevelopment zone, which is bordered on the north by Laird Street, the south byMorrisAvenue, the west by Ocean Boulevard, and the east by the ocean.

"The Long Branch government made a decision to completely restructure the beachfront in Long Branch," Gasiorowski said. "I don't know anybody who says the eminent domain process is fair to the property owners.

"The city fatherswho passed the eminent domain [laws] in Long Branch should be ashamed of themselves.

"Mrs.Cicalese bought that propertymore than 40 years ago and she died in September at the age of 92.

"She didn't get to live to see this through," he said, adding, "Is that fair?"