Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Lennar Corporation and M&M Realty want to take a closer look at Route 9 South eyesore at entrance to Berkeley Township
Just how contaminated is the Beachwood Shopping Center site and what would it cost to clean it up and redevelop the longtime eyesore? No one really knows the answers yet. But a representative of Lennar Corporation said the company wants to partner with M&M Realty to find out. "The township is in the process of looking to name a new redeveloper," Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. said at the May 6 Township Council meeting. Amato said he wants council members to meet within the next several days to decide whether to name the two firms the redevelopers of record for the dilapidated site. Once they are named, the companies can begin environmental studies to determine how much it would cost to remediate the site. "They will be able to make a …
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Superstorm Sandy tops the list
Township Council President James J. Byrnes perhaps summed up 2012 the best recently. "I'm glad it's over," Byrnes said at the Dec. 27 council meeting, the governing body's last in a tumultuous year. We've culled what we feel are the top ten stories from 2012. What do you think? Tell us in the comments section below. • Berkeley Reeling From Hurricane Sandy Our biggest story of the year is a no-brainer. Hurricane Sandy, Superstorm Sandy, Frankenstorm - whatever you want to call it - pummeled the Jersey Shore and devastated sections of Berkeley. Good Luck Point, Glen Cove, Pelican Island, South Seaside Park and the Toms River Shores section were the hardest hit. Two months after Sandy, many residents have still not been able to return to …
Friday, December 28, 2012
Owner can still appeal fines, Township Council president says
The meter is running. Beachwood Shopping Center owner Priscilla Oughton is now facing fines of $40,000 a day for the condition of the battered plaza on Route 9 South in Bayville. The entire perimeter of the shopping center is now fenced in, so vehicles and pedestrians cannot get near the battered stores and parking lot with sinkholes. "There's a lot of challenges presented by that particular structure," Township Attorney Lauren Staiger said after a resident asked about the status of the shopping center. The shopping center - a longtime eyesore off the busy highway - has been vacant for years. Township Fire Official Jack Wiegartner ordered a number of corrective actions be taken after a vacant store in the strip mall caught fire during the …
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Township's immediate focus for Route 9 South eyesore is code compliance, mayor says
Thanks, but no thanks. The redeveloper of record for the dilapidated Beachwood Shopping Center on Route 9 South has walked away from the project, Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. said. Township Council President James J. Byrnes was informed by Donato Donofrio that he was no longer interested in redeveloping the site because of the poor economy, Amato said. "I asked him if he's still interested, he said they are done," Byrnes said. "With the economy and the amount of money they would need to invest..." The news was a blow to ratable-poor Berkeley and its massive redevelopment plan. The long-vacant, battered shopping center was ground zero in the redevelopment plan. It's been an eyesore on Route 9 South for many years. "It's unfortunate," Amato …
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
More time needed to assess impact of Hurricane Sandy on defunct Route 9 mall, lawyer says
The owner of the decaying Beachwood Shopping Center on Route 9 South in Bayville wants more time to respond to the township's demolition order issued several weeks ago. "We request time to inspect the condition of the property and the alleged violations," said Michael J. McCalley, attorney for Beachwood Mall LLC. The shopping center - a longtime eyesore off the busy highway - has been vacant for years. Township Fire Official Jack Wiegartner ordered a number of corrective actions be taken after a vacant store in the strip mall caught fire during the height of Hurricane Sandy. He ordered owner Priscilla Oughton to take a number of corrective actions immediately, including vacating the shopping center, removing the structures, demolishing …
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Dilapidated plaza has numerous code violations
The frightening fire that broke out at the Beachwood Shopping Center at the height of Hurricane Sandy was a blaze that Bayville Volunteer Fire Company members would like to forget. Transformers exploded and blew. The wind funneled the flames away from the water. Firefighters couldn't get too close because of metal and debris whirling through the air. They had to lay fire hoses from the Roy Rogers restaurant across Route 9. "That wind was coming across so hard," said Township Council President James J. Byrnes, who was on the scene. "Debris was flying all over the place. I got the hell out of there." Although plans had been in the works to condemn the property, the fire was apparently the last straw for Fire Official Jack Wiegartner. He …
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Officials toured Route 9 site last week
Township officials went behind closed doors at the Oct. 23 Township Council meeting to discuss possible actions against the owners of the battered Beachwood Shopping Center. Township Council President James J. Byrnes and Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. declined to discuss just what action would be taken during a break before going into executive session. The owners of the site on Route 9 South are going to "get a letter," Byrnes said. "I think it's an unsightly structure," Brynes said. Byrnes, Amato, Township Councilwoman Judy Noonan, Councilman John Bacchione, Township Administrator Fred Ebenau, Township Engineer Alan Dittenhoffer, and construction, code enforcement and fire officials toured the site last week to review the conditions and the …
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
No news since State Planning Commission approved township's plan in July
Berkeley officials rejoiced in July when the State Planning Commission gave its long-sought okay to the township's massive redevelopment plan. The plan approval meant that Donato Donofrio - the redeveloper of record - was free to iron out a cleanup agreement with the owner of the dilapidated Beachwood Shopping Center and get started on the redevelopment. But nothing has happened since then. Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. said after tonight's Township Council meeting he plans to call Donofrio to see if he still wants to proceed. Estimates to clean up the asphalt plant behind the defunct shopping center, remove asbestos from the buildings and raze the site have ranged as high as $50 million, Amato said. "Removal will be costly," he said. The …
Sunday, October 7, 2012
The Route 9 commercial corridor in Bayville is studded with empty buildings, long-vacant lots
Visitors heading down Route 9 South into Bayville are greeted by a "Welcome to Berkeley Township" sign as they pass the boundary line between Pine Beach and the township. But the view after the sign isn't pretty. The decaying Beachwood Shopping Center - with its sagging roofs, boarded-up, long-vacant stores and battered parking lot full of weeds - is the next thing they see. Despite the state Planning Commission's long-sought approval of the township's massive redevelopment plan in early July, the site remains untouched. Although retail seems to be booming just a few miles down Route 9 in nearby Lacey Township, that is not the case in Berkeley. The Baywick and Berkeley plazas are the only larger mall-like complexes along the Route 9 …
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Beachwood Shopping Center, Santo Marina site under code enforcement scrutiny
Are you tired of looking at the battered hulk known as the Beachwood Shopping Center when you cross Beachwood's boundary and enter Berkeley Township? So are township officials. So sometime next week - unless things improve - summonses will be issued for the current condition of the site off Route 9 South, Township Council President James J. Byrnes said. "Something has got to be done soon," Byrnes said this weekend. The shopping center - which is actually in Berkeley, not Beachwood - has been largely vacant for decades, slowly deteriorating from the elements. Plants and weeds are growing inside some of the stores. The show "Life After People" could film here. Developer Donato Donofrio has yet to sign an agreement with the Johnson family, …
nicnac
9:40 am on Thursday, May 9, 2013
I agree with some of the above. Definitely no big box stores. They ruin the area. Make it look like a main street, I think it's called a lifestyle center or something. They can make it look pretty with landscaping, fountains, have live music in the summer on the weekends. I was hopeful after that fire, that the whole thing burned to the ground. What are Central Regional's big plans? Sorry for the… more ›