By Sunayana Prabhu
SEA BRIGHT – The Shrewsbury River Properties Redevelopment Area will be going through another update as the planning board voted to include additional borough-owned properties in the plan. In October, the Sea Bright Borough Council proposed designating the additional properties as part of the area in need of redevelopment and authorized the board to consider adding them.
Planning board chairman C. Lance Cunningham called the new areas “very small borough properties,” even noting one, Poppinger Place, is a “paper street,” a through street that connects River and South streets. “The other is a little old ramp down to the water where people took their kayaks,” he said, referring to a public path at the end of Surf Street that goes up to the river off Front Street.
Both of these borough-owned proper ties in the heart of Sea Bright’s downtown are located in close proximity to the original site plan and “will be part of the redevelopment,” Cunningham said.
According to the redevelopment concept plan, Poppinger Place will undergo a right of way relocation as the current kayak launch area is partially on private proper ties.
Neither lot was included in the initial redevelopment area plan previously approved by the planning board and also by the council, said Jennifer Beahm, a board planner. The borough has to amend the redevelopment plan and then “the developer can come back in for an approval,” Beahm said.
The properties met one or more of the statutory criteria that established them as a “condemnation area in need of development,” following the report presented by Cofone Consulting Group to the council in May 2019.
The Shrewsbury River Properties Redevelopment Area includes proposed construction of 44 residential units called The Haven at Sea Bright on 2.97 acres along the Shrewsbury River from Front Street to River Street. The project was taken over by Denholtz Developers this year and includes a mix of four single-family homes, a 15-unit condominium building, seven townhomes that extend north from Sea Bright’s public kayak launch to River Street and 18 additional townhomes between South Street and River Street.
In addition to the housing units, the site will also include an acre of public green space located between the borough’s public kayak launch on Front Street and River Street and 810 feet of public riverfront boardwalk which will be constructed over 840 feet of steel bulkhead. A dog park, fishing pier and cleaning station are par t of this proposed residential recreation area.
“The river front project is an important project for Sea Bright,” said Heather Gorman, a planning board member, who will be joining the borough council in January after her victory in the November election.
Gorman suggested the board put up more information on the borough website for the community to stay aware and have clarity on the stages of redevelopment of the area “because it’s a long process, the redevelopment plan has been going on for years.”
Gorman lives 200 feet from the proposed riverfront properties project.
“Ever since I’ve lived here, we’ve looked at the river through a chain fence that has been abandoned, empty for over 12 years,” she said, noting the area really does need redevelopment. The bulkheads aren’t maintained and cause flooding issues downtown, she said.
“It’s an area of opportunity,” Gorman said, but because there’s so many gaps between stages, the community doesn’t know where we are in the process.”
Information on the borough website would allow “the community to be up to speed with the proper steps, and so they feel comfortable that they’re able to provide correct feedback at the right time.”
The article originally appeared in the December 1 – 7, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
