Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Asbury Park may be home to 59 residential units along with a rooftop deck and a pool under a plan proposed by a developer.
Earlier this year the church was sold. Last week a presentation was made by the attorney and architect from developer JLD Investment Group, LLC to the Asbury Park City Council. At the informal presentation details about new construction at the site and renovation of the church building and the adjacent parking lot were discussed.
The last mass at Holy Spirit was in early June when many parishioners past and present came to pay their last respects to the historic and much-beloved church.
Parishioners will now attend Our Lady Mount Carmel Church on Asbury Avenue, which is part of the Mother of Mercy Parish.
The developer plans townhome-style dwellings inside the church while the exterior will remain the same.
The basement of the building will have storage, a gathering space, a lounge, and restrooms as amenities for residents.
The proposal also calls for the construction of a 68,148- square-foot building on the current parking lot adjacent to the church building in a triangular shape, leaving room for parking spaces and easterly views from the units’ balconies.
There will be a landscaped courtyard in the center of the building if plans are approved by the planning board.
Altogether there will be 52 apartments and seven townhomes with 80 percent at market rate and 20 percent affordable housing.
The 52 market-rate apartments are configured with eight one-bedroom apartments and 33 2 bedroom apartments.
The affordable housing units include two one-bedroom apartments, six two-bedroom apartments, and three three-bedroom apartments.
Mayor John Moor asked if the square footage of all the apartments complied with the city’s zoning laws and the developer assured him they would.
Developers have included 60 parking spaces at a rate of 1.2 per unit, which is above the standard requirement. Several units will include balconies overlooking the triangular courtyard in the center of the building
There is a walkway, with landscaping and lighting between the two buildings.
A ground-floor cafe and juice bar, part of the 1355-square-foot retail space proposed, will be open to residents and the community as well.
Developers expressed a desire for the cafe and juice bar to be a place community members will gather, saying they wanted the area to be an amenity to the neighborhood and for the building to be “something in harmony” with the surroundings. They also want the new construction to have historic merit.
The rooftop of the new building is lower than the church and provides views to the east onto Second Avenue.
The plans call for a dark contemporary exterior for the new building.
“It will frame the church, not overtake it,” representatives said.
The new building’s windows are vertical and Gothic in nature, with a contemporary motif to compliment the church windows.
Following the presentation, Mayor John Moor would like the project to be as green as possible.
