By PETE WALTON
Bradley Beach officials will obtain appraisals on two Fifth Avenue properties as they consider options for more parking near Main Street.
Mayor Gary Engelstad said the borough is not committed to buying the single-family residences at 705 and 707 Fifth Ave. but is simply exploring its options.
“We just want to see what the price is,” the mayor said.
Engelstad told a resident who inquired that 18 parking spaces could be created on the lots.
The Borough Council voted at its meeting this week to pay Stern and Dragoset of Woodbridge $1,500 and Benchmark Appraisal of Wall $1,000 to conduct the appraisals
Parking is already at a premium along the Main Street corridor and a forthcoming state project may reduce the number of existing spaces.
The council heard a presentation by Trevor Taylor of CME Associates, an engineering firm hired by Neptune to plan and oversee bulkhead repairs at Fletcher Lake.
Taylor said repairs to the Neptune section of the project would cost $250,584. The cost to Bradley Beach would be $192,727.
Though Neptune has more current problems with the deteriorating bulkhead, Bradley Beach will have to address its bulkhead problems sooner or later, according to borough engineer Gerald Freda. Freda said Bradley Beach would save a considerable amount of money if it used the engineering work done by Neptune.
Mayor Engelstad said he learned that U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th) met recently with officials of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to discuss the corps’ ongoing study of 14 coastal lakes in Smith’s district.
The list includes Fletcher Lake as wel as Sylvan Lake at the border between Bradley Beach and Avon.
The mayor said Smith was hopeful that the study would lead to more protection against flood risks for the towns bordering the lakes.
The council also approved the hiring of George Bachar, Dylan Ely, Dennis Garbacki, Chris Henry, Evan McNamara, Ralph Noriega, Joseph Strohmenger, Randy Thorne and Ryan Waddell as Class I special police officers. Justin Poblete, Connor Prasad, Nicholas Rodrigues and Dennis Stack were appointed as Class II special officers.
