Coaster Photo
This house at 402 Fifth Ave., Asbury Park is one of the oldest in the city.
By ED SALVAS
An historic house on Fifth Avenue in Asbury Park has been sold and is undergoing renovation.
The house at 402 Fifth Ave. dates back to the late 1800’s, according to longtime owner Werner Baumgartner, who recently sold the property. He said it will be completely restored by the new owners and remain a single-family home.
Baumgartner declined to name the new owners, other than they are area residents. The renovation has already begun with the removal of a small cottage and shed behind the house. Ten trees on the property have also been removed, including a 150-year old oak tree. Baumgartner bought the house in 1981 and made his home there until selling it recently.
The house was built as a single-family home in 1880 and enlarged in 1894. It has 3,500-square-feet with five bedrooms. Baumgartner said before WWII it was a Bed and Breakfast and then was converted into five efficiency apartments named “Lake Terrace.” The owner was not happy being a landlord and eventually closed the apartments.
Baumgartner developed a strong interest in the historic preservation in Asbury Park and said he was appointed city historian by a prior City Council. He has a lot to say about some of the changes in the city that have taken place since the redevelopment that he believes have “changed the look and feel of the city in a negative way.”
He believes the city today is at a “tipping point” by allowing the taking of some public land for private use.
Baumgartner said Asbury Park founder James Bradley designed Asbury Park’s landscape of streets, avenues and parks well before a single building was built.
When it came time to move, Baumgartner faced another challenge. As a retired engineer, he’d collected a house full of vintage computers and other electronics. He has donated most of his collection to the Info Age Science and History Museums at Camp Evans in Wall Township.
