Off-season event space proposed at Beach Club
Converting former shade shacks also among possible projects
The Allenhurst Beach Club’s north deck may be converted into an enclosed event venue in the next year.
Beach club workers are putting together cost estimates for a variety of potential projects, including converting the club’s north deck into an enclosed space for use during the off season. Each year, the borough commissioners approves improvement projects for the club.
Although responses from the commissioners at this week’s meeting were positive, beach club manager Doug Caron estimated that it will be around two months before any improvement projects are decided on.
The beach club has a list of other projects they will propose for completion during the off season, including developing a new pump system for emptying and filling the pool, as well as alterations to the Shade Shacks, shaded pavilions with rocking chairs.
“Lots of people would like to see the former Shade Shacks on the north deck at the beach club converted during the off season so they could go down and see the view,” said Caron in a phone interview.
The space could also be used for special events and meetings.
Caron is seeking an estimate from contractors, but does not think enclosing and heating the space will be costly.
“There’s electricity below in the pump room, and a space line in place and ready to go up that was never completed. The line’s sitting there now. You could have an electric heater in there if you wanted, and it wouldn’t take much,” Caron said at a recent city commissioners meeting.
The largest expense would be walls and a door for the deck, Caron said, citing similar projects in Bradley Beach and Avon.
Renting the space and keeping it open during the off season would increase revenue for the beach club and for the town, officials said.
If approved, the space would not interfere with the work done annually on the beach club during the off season, and access to the pool would be blocked off.