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To the Editor:

Asbury Park is one of New Jersey’s hottest emerging cities. Tagged by one publication as the “Coolest Small Town in the Country,” the City has been the subject of articles by national and international publications, which have noted its comeback and growth of wealthy residents. Asbury Park has a high population of lower-income African American, Haitian, and Hispanic residents, which make up almost 70 percent of a beachfront community in one of the wealthiest counties in New Jersey.

Numerous Asbury Park residents felt it was time to make sure that those who suffered through the bad times don’t get pushed out during the City’s revival. We want to live in a town where economic justice is front and center. We organized and created the Asbury Park Affordable Housing Coalition [APAHC] to make sure that those who have a low income, including the working class, seniors, and retirees, can still live in our “City by the Sea.” We are proud to report that Asbury Park has taken another step toward protecting its diversity and its inclusive.  

On Monday, February 25, the city’s planning board said they would formally approve an affordable housing plan that will protect the city’s low-income residents. The plan will ensure that future development includes affordable housing units. This process was a beautiful example of how grassroots movements like the APAHC can work with members of the City government to make justice and horizontal democracy a reality. The City’s original affordable housing plan was adequately progressive on its own. However, our Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Council, and Planning Board took many hours of their time to listen to our concerns and recommendations which helped to make it one of the most progressive affordable housing plans for any beach town in New Jersey.

APAHC is currently advocating for more affordable housing on the waterfront. The 2002 Waterfront Redevelopment Agreement inherited by iStar Financial does not require affordable housing. We believe that affordable housing on the waterfront is very important.  The waterfront area is where more than 50 percent of the City’s new development will be created.

Without proactive intervention, gentrified development of Asbury Park could result in a wealthy, homogeneous and exclusive town. The APAHC wants to engage with developers to ensure new projects are inclusive for all. We want to make this town a unique, inclusive and diverse place for all. There was a time when beaches and housing in Asbury Park were legally segregated.  While racial segregation was made illegal, economic segregation has kept our beaches and city segregated by race and class. We believe that providing affordable housing all over our city would help end this de facto segregation.

We will make Asbury Park a model for affordable housing.

The Asbury Park Affordable Housing Coalition

[Photo courtesy of Google Maps]

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