Redevelopment Sought for Bradley Beach Property Giamano’s
 Coaster Photo |
By TOM CARDINALE
The owners of Giamanos restaurant in Bradley Beach and a potential developer there are hoping to get approval to demolish the building and redevelop the property.
Developer Steve Howe presented a preliminary plan for the redevelopment of the property on Main Street to the Bradley Beach Borough Council this week. He was also joined by a planner and architect who explained the merits of the project design.
“We went before the Planning Board and they referred numerous times that we should be before you,” Howe said to the council before revealing the preliminary rendering of the project, titled “Empire Lofts at Bradley Beach, LLC.”
Howe said he needed to come before the council to address a height issue with phase one of the project, which would occupy the Giamano’s location. Howe asked the council to understand the dilemma the project was facing and why the changes to the ordinance to allow a higher building were necessary.
“We’re not changing the density as much as we’re increasing parking, which is important for the town,” he said.
Howe and architect Christopher Rice explained that the residential project would be of normal height but they hoped to place it over surface level parking, raising the peak height to 54 feet as conceptually designed.
“We definitely want to provide the parking this project needs,” Rice said. The current ordinance allows a maximum height of 40 feet with 10 percent over that deemed acceptable, meaning the project is roughly 10 feet above the current absolute maximum. However, Howe and Rice both said the project would not be financially feasible or marketable any other way.
“Do we design a plain, vanilla box and get as close to 44 feet or do we give it some architecture,” Rice said.
Rice also said that the 24 units of residences would be of normal size as far as ceiling heights and the top floor would not be a fully enclosed “story,” instead featuring a rooftop garden and varying roof heights to create a better roof line for the street.
They went on to explain that they were asking or a modification to the zoning ordinance, rather than a variance, and they also referenced other locations they could offer the council where the modification would also be beneficial.
The council mostly questioned the parking, asking whether the lot below the building would accommodate the 24 residential units as well as the restaurant. Howe said the restaurant would cover approximately 3,500 square feet but it was unknown how many seats it would feature, which is the determining factor in how many parking spots are necessary. There must be one parking spot for every three seats in the restaurant, borough engineer Phil Kavanaugh said.
Council members Gary Engelstad and Julie Schreck also questioned the feasibility of the project. Engelstad wondered whether it was possible to market a luxury condominium in the current recession and housing market while Schreck asked if any other towns had built high end residences adjacent to railroad tracks and how that affected them.
Howe said the marketability of the project was studied before the current recession but didn’t say what it would be under current conditions. He also said other towns, such as Morristown, have built similar residences adjacent to the railroad tracks successfully.
The council left the issue open, saying they would look into the height issue as well as the closing of the alley that runs behind Giamano’s currently. The project would cut off one end of the alley and the council questioned how people still living in the area would be able to utilize the alley.
Giamano’s owner Stefan Manno said he is optimistic about the plans chances.
“I think we’re going to go forward with the plan we have,” he said. “It’s not out of line. Its not high density. We feel there’s a lot the project has to offer and not a lot that’s a detriment.”
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