Neptune Residents Discuss Transit Village Plan
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By DON STINE
Residents in the Bradley Park section of Neptune are having real, hands-on input into what their neighborhood may look like if redeveloped into a transit village to complement the nearby train station in Bradley Beach.
Last Wednesday residents attended a special workshop meeting where they used various cutouts that could be placed over aerial maps of the neighborhood to see what types of buildings and uses they believe may be compatible with the neighborhood.
The residents talked about what kind of shapes and forms of buildings could be built there by using the cutouts. They could visualize how redevelopment may change the area someday and we also can get a sense on the type of zoning residents want to see there, said Mayor Randy Bishop.
Bishop said the meeting was an affirmation of much that was heard from residents during the first workshop held last month.
The meeting gave us a good deal of information on how to create the form-based zoning using the cutouts and gives property owners flexibility in the way their property can be used. We also dont want redevelopment that is out of character with what already exists in Bradley Beach, he said.
Bishop said residents were pretty much in favor of commercial uses along Memorial Drive that would gradually transition to strictly residential as the project proceeds westward.
The township wants to designate the Bradley Park area as a transit village because of its proximity to the New Jersey Transit station on the other side of Memorial Drive, in Bradley Beach.
Transit villages are a joint effort between the state Department of Transportation and NJ Transit to provide better access and service for commuters and people who live around mass transit stops.
The township is considering changing some of the uses and zoning in the area as part of the transit village plan.
The transit village would be in the area from Memorial Drive to Atkins Avenue and from Sixth Avenue to Ninth Avenue.
Several residents said they are worried about the possibility of eminent domain being used to seize their properties for the project
Eminent domain is not part of what this is about. Personally I understand their concerns but I want to assure them it is not part of the plan, Bishop said.
Bishop said there may be some aspects of the plan that can be implemented before a long-term, final plan is developed, such as calming traffic on Memorial Drive, planting trees, adding signs and improving crosswalks.
There is no time frame for the long-term project right now. We will look at it, go through the process, come up with zoning alternatives and work them through, he said.
Committeewoman Mary Beth Jahn, who lives in the neighborhood, said a streetscape plan will probably proceed on a faster track.
We are definitely looking more toward street improvements without having to go to the long-term plan right now, she said.
Jahn said new curbs, sidewalks, and trees are options and that township officials will seek grant money to pay for that.
The long-term plan will still be investigated but not fast-tracked and done without the use of eminent domain. Right now it will be more of an infill-type project, she said.
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