Toms River Planning Commission rejects 64-unit downtown apartment complex – Toms River, NJ Shorebeat

A 64-unit mixed-use development proposed for downtown Toms River, April 2024 (Photo: Planning Document)

The Toms River Planning Board rejected a developer’s request to build a 64-unit apartment complex downtown, rejecting an argument that the proposed plan met the redevelopment zone conditions that had already installed.

The building proposed for 101 West Water St. has already been the subject of a lawsuit, as well as one previous board hearing in April that was postponed after a newly appointed designer asked for more time to review the application. Prior to that hearing, the proposal had been the subject of minor litigation, with attorney Robert S. Shay filing a motion to compel the hearing after the city’s building department found the application incomplete. Superior Court Judge Francis Hodgson ordered the application placed on the planning board’s agenda for consideration, rejecting Shea’s request to simply approve the case without a hearing due to the expiration of a statutory deadline.

The board ultimately voted against the project at a hearing Tuesday night, citing issues with traffic, entry and exit points and general downtown safety concerns. Shea, a representative of Waterfront Development Partners, LLC, which is based in Lakewood and is led by developer Mark Tress, argued that the application fully complies with the terms of the downtown redevelopment plan, which is located in the Village Business (VB) zone. The board’s professionals and the township’s legal team, however, countered that while parts of downtown have been zoned in need of redevelopment, that fact alone is not sufficient reason to approve a project that would otherwise not meet the property’s base zoning. Waterfront Development Partners has never signed a redevelopment agreement with the township, meaning the company will be held to the same standards as any other developer.

After the meeting, Mayor Dan Rodrick said municipal officials held a meeting with Shea shortly before the planning board hearing to discuss the redevelopment, but that meeting did not yield positive results.

“We raised our concerns about what he was asking for and he basically told us that’s their bid and go pound salt,” Rodrick said.

Location of proposed development program in downtown Toms River, April 2024. (Photo: Shorebeat)

The 64-unit complex would violate the city’s building height ordinance, be five stories tall instead of the four stories normally allowed in the zone, have insufficient parking by about 1.4 spaces per unit and include 2,560 square feet of street retail space. of the first floor, when the zone would require the entire first floor to be occupied by retail space and residential units located above.

The developer also sought a tax abatement for several decades.

The offer consisted of 64 residential apartments on the second to fifth floors, including 15 one-room, 41 two-room and eight three-room apartments. Currently, the property is used as an asphalt parking lot. A two-way entry and exit point would be built along Water Street.

The township is now considering whether to permanently rescind another downtown redevelopment ordinance that led to a scuttled proposal to build a large residential tower on Toms River, complete with a public waterfront and amphitheater. Downtown redevelopment has become the town’s most pressing issue in recent years, as residents and officials have argued over whether large buildings and modern mixed-use development fit the character of a downtown that many consider historic in nature. The Planning Board is currently reviewing the repeal measure to issue a recommendation on the matter, which will eventually go to the City Council for final approval.