---

To the Editor, Asbury Park Sun:

On Monday, September 14th at 6:00 p.m. via Zoom, iStar will reveal its final plans for an exclusive Pool Club to be located on the east side of Ocean Avenue, on 7th Avenue. It’s important that people participate in the virtual meeting, as well as voice their opinions to the Mayor and Council. Perhaps most critical right now, during election season, is that voters make it known to all candidates running for Council that they are for an open public waterfront, and it will be a priority issue when casting a ballot in the municipal election. 

Yes, the 2002 plan allows for a beach club. The Mayor and Council, our redevelopment authority, negotiates with iStar and frequently amends the Waterfront Redevelopment Agreement. The ill-conceived beach club needs to be negotiated away. It’s time to bring the public back into the public/private partnership.

The vast majority of people that live in and visit Asbury Park will not be able to afford to attend the beach club. The idea that the City of Asbury Park will devote an entire city block of our waterfront to a beach club doesn’t fit with the vision of an affordable, family friendly, diverse, “kind of edgy,” rock n’ roll progressive community.

And, it’s time to finally preserve Bradley Cove – the area of North Beach by the fisherman’s lot in front of the senior building on Ocean Avenue. The public has been asking to save Asbury’s waterfront from the slated development of 15 townhomes since the plan was first conceived and announced in 2002. Now is the time to pressure our governing body to negotiate the deal and get it done. Development rights will likely need to be “bought back” using public dollars. Taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for an exclusive North Beach, but should invest in a public waterfront that is accessible and welcoming to all.

Our community needs a swimming pool, but let’s make sure that it’s open to the public and affordable. Let’s make sure that our kids can enjoy it and that we no longer allocate our resources to create an exclusive north end. Nothing should be built east of Ocean Avenue.

Let your voice be heard and make sure you vote for a welcoming and open public waterfront and a beach and boardwalk for all.

Kerry Butch and Felicia Simmons 

Candidates for Asbury Park City Council 

[This letter represents the opinion of its writer and is not representative of any opinion of the Asbury Park Sun staff. All readers are welcome to submit Letters to the Editor to news@asburyparksun.com for our consideration. For guidelines on letter-writing and submission, click here.]

——————————————————————————————-

Follow the Asbury Park Sun on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The Asbury Park Sun is affiliated with the triCityNews newspaper.

---