By Allison Perrine
HIGHLANDS – The borough recently approved a temporary 30-day mercantile license for the operator of Captain’s Cove Marina after an initial denial citing “numerous deficiencies” in ongoing repairs.
The unanimous decision made Aug. 19 grants a temporary license that automatically expires in 30 days. In the meantime, it will allow the engineers for both the borough and the applicant, Geoffrey Pierini, to establish an agreement for the completion of repairs to the bulkhead and the posting of a performance bond.
Mayor Carolyn Broullon said the council decided to grant Pierini a temporary license because he has “made a great deal of repairs over the last few months” and the borough has done this in the past “when there’s a great deal of work to be done.”
“Hopefully we can move forward to a full license and a productive arrangement for all parties,” she said. “I think Mr. Pierini has done a lot of due diligence. He’s put a lot of his money into it…he’s creating a really good buzz around the community,” and she thinks it’s a project that will “really add to Highlands in a positive fashion.”
The longtime slip and boat rental site is located in the north-central part of town along Sandy Hook Bay. It is almost entirely water with some small pieces of land at the southern intersection of Cheerful Place and Washington Avenue and the northeast corner of Marine Place and Washington Avenue. According to the 2018 redevelopment plan prepared by Heyer, Gruel & Associates, half of the property is in a 100-year floodplain and storm wave hazard area.
The site has been used as a marina for about 100 years with Sanborn maps of the area dating back to 1922 showing that it was used as a boat slip at the time. According the Heyer, Gruel report, Captain’s Cove saw “significant damage” from Super Storm Sandy and is not yet restored to its pre-storm condition. Broullon also noted a great deal of storms have added to its disrepair over the years and the last time the marina was really refurbished to a great extent was in 1947.
The mercantile license denial came in July in a letter naming several deficiencies identified by the borough engineer. That included “multiple failures to make repairs” in accordance with the submitted plans and distortions of damage in the borough right-of-way, which presented “significant structural issues” with the potential for “catastrophic failure” of the bulkhead. But Pierini viewed it differently, calling the rejection letter “disappointing” and “really disturbing.”
“It’s the end of the season; they’ve already cost me two months of revenue with renting the boats and it’s all based on a bunch of nonsense,” he told The Two River Times. “I just feel it was just crafted to lead this down a road of condemnation.”
Pierini, the president and CEO of Turn Key Resource Group, started work at the property in April with plans to dredge the water to make way for larger boats and to fix up the area. There were environmental issues to take care of first, he said, so he changed his contract with the marina owner to a land lease which would allow them to start the necessary improvements.
But some of the borough engineer’s is- sues with the property stated in the letter are “well beyond” what the previous operator was required to address, he said. That includes roadway repavement, curbing reconstruction and off-site improvements he said he should not be responsible for.
“We’re doing everything we can to mitigate any damages at this marina,” he said.
When Pierini learned about the sale of Schupp’s Landing, a Highlands-based business that rents boats and sells marine fuel and bait and tackle, he purchased its rental boats, restored them and put new motors on them in order to rent them out at Captain’s Cove. He felt it was the right thing do to and could get more people out on the wa- ter who can’t afford boats, especially during the pandemic, he said.
“I’ve been begging, begging, the town to…work with me here and let me rent these things out. Not a day goes by that I’m down there at the marina and people don’t come up to me and say ‘Hey, can I use one of those boats?’ And I have to give them the same answer over and over again that I’m not permitted to rent boats yet,” he said. “Am I snapping my fingers and giving you guys a new marina overnight? No, no I’m not,” he added, but he also said he’s not willing to let the borough hold him “hostage for the mercantile license.”
Brian M. Nelson, managing partner of the Red Bank-based Archer Attorneys at Law and representative of Pierini, said it was important that at least a temporary license be granted so the marina could collect “some sort of revenue stream” while improvements continue.
Now, both parties’ engineers will work together to come up with an appropriate plan to fix and satisfy the borough engineer’s concerns for the property within the 30 days.
Councilman Kenneth Braswell said the approval could be a positive for the business community at large. “He’ll probably have to hire employees, which could be residents, and his customers will probably also be other business’ customers. They’re going to want to buy food and stuff and take on their outings. Many of their customers will also be residents as well. I think this kind of goes around and comes around.”
During the public hearing on the potential temporary license renewal, a few people testified in favor of Pierini. Highlands resident Russ Chelak, for example, said he and his wife have frequented Captain’s Cove since 1985 and built the docks for Bahrs Landing and Twin Lights Marina. He called it “the most protected marina in the New York Metropolitan Area” for numerous reasons. He said the bulkheads are “some of the finest in Highlands” and that they are rot- and rust-proof. He called the claims about the bulkheads being unsound “absolutely false” and said the new demands for road repavement should not be mandated for the marina to open.
Others did not agree. Resident Claudette Darrigo spoke during public comment Aug. 19 and said that “those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Obviously,” that is the case with Captain’s Cove, she added.
Resident Kim Skorka said it is “absolutely ridiculous” for the council to have approved the license while the marina still lacks certain amenities for customers including bathrooms and trash cans, as well as parking; the existing lot is covered in dirt and construction equipment, Skorka noted.
“I think it was very presumptuous of you to grant him a mercantile license without ensuring he had these basic qualifications ready. I want this marina operating but this is absolutely ridiculous when you’re treating the neighborhood like this,” she said. “I know for a fact that boat rentals are in high demand this season.”
This article appeared in the Aug. 27-Sept. 2 issue of The Two River Times.
