The Asbury Park Housing Authority [APHA] has taken its first step toward the possible demolition of the Boston Way housing complex.
The APHA will soon send an application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development [HUD] requesting permission to demolish the building.
Currently, 74 families reside in the Boston Way complex [pictured above]. The APHA will apply to Newark’s HUD division for Section Eight vouchers for those families. The vouchers are mobile, meaning they can be used anywhere in the United States. But the APHA will provide counselling to the 74 families to help them stay in Asbury Park if they want.
Many of the families have said they do not wish to move out of public housing. APHA will place those families on waiting lists for other Asbury Park complexes, Gibson said.
The resolution to apply for permission to demolish was approved at the Jan. 29 APHA meeting. About 60 Boston Way residents attended the meeting, according to Danny Gibson. Gibson is Chief of Staff for the Long Branch Housing Authority, which currently oversees operations at the APHA on an interim basis.
It could take three to six months for the APHA’s application to receive approval from HUD’s Chicago officers, Gibson said. After it’s approved, the APHA will apply to the Newark HUD office for the new Section Eight vouchers, which will likely take one or two months.
The goal is to vacate Boston Way residents before next winter, as the complex’s heating system is in severe disrepair. Currently, heat is being provided through two boilers on a flatbed truck, which is quite costly, Gibson said.
