City to select Springwood Avenue redeveloper
Retail, residential construction may begin next year
The wheels are in motion for the city to name a redeveloper for the Springwood Avenue redevelopment project.
The city recently issued a request for qualifications [RFQ] to gauge interest in redeveloping the area of Springwood Avenue from Memorial Drive to Atkins Avenue.. The deadline for potential developers to submit their qualifications was June 1. The city heard back from five developers who are interested in the area.
The Springwood Avenue redevelopment zone includes all of Springwood Avenue from Memorial Drive to the border with Neptune. The redevelopment plan in question includes the easternmost half of the area.
The area is vacant now, although it used to be a thriving area of commerce, city redeveloper Donald Sammet said. During riots in 1970, the businesses and housing there burned to the ground.
City officials hope to restore Springwood Avenue to its former glory. The redevelopment plan permits nightclubs in the area, a nod to the music scene that once flourished there. In its heyday, Springwood Avenue played host to performances by the likes of Ike and Tina Turner, Sammet said.
The city has named Deputy Mayor John Loffredo and Councilman Kevin Sanders to the committee responsible for reviewing developers’ qualifications, Sammet said. Loffredo and Sanders will ask the leading candidates for proposals outlining their exact plans for the area. Finally, the city will name an official redeveloper for the project.
If all goes according to plan, construction will begin in a year, Sammet said.
The city has outlined some specific goals in the redevelopment plan, including that 20 percent of new housing be affordable to low- and moderate-income households, Sammet said. City officials will also take into account prospective developers’ willingness to hire local workers and buy local products during construction.
The area from Memorial Drive to Sylvan Avenue is zoned for restaurants and retail on the first floor and residential on the upper floors of any new construction. Sylvan Avenue through Atkins Avenue are zoned all-residential, Sammet said.
Much of Springwood Avenue has remained vacant since 1970 because of a legal dispute between the city and the area’s former redeveloper, Sammet said. In the 1980s, the city entered a redevelopment agreement with Asbury Shores, a firm responsible for rebuilding the avenue. Asbury Shores built some townhomes that are still standing on Springwood, but they stopped after the completion of those buildings. The city claimed the redeveloper was “not performing under their redeveloper agreement,” and entered into litigation with Asbury Shores, Sammet said. The suit was not settled until 2010.
“It’s been a long road for the city on this one, but things are happening,” Sammet said.
The city has also been working behind the scenes on hatching a new development agreement, Sammet said. Several years ago, the city held community meetings to gain feedback from residents of the west side of town, who will be most affected by the redevelopment. Through these meetings, city officials learned most residents wanted affordable housing to be included in any redevelopment on Springwood, Sammet said.
The city is maintaining ownership of a pocket of land located at the northeast corner of Springwood and Atkins avenues. This 60,000-square-foot area will be developed into a park with a small field, a playground and a picnic area, Sammet said. It will also include a central courtyard, which will function as a gathering space, and an amphitheater-like stage where performances can be held.
The park will be surrounded by a walking or jogging path, Sammet said.
The city has received a grant from Monmouth County’s Open Space program in the amount of $250,000 for improvements to the park, although the overall estimate for the park is $2 million. The city is working to find more revenue sources to help with the cost of building out the park, Sammet said.
The city is also celebrating the completion of the first of its Springwood Avenue redevelopment efforts, as construction on the Springwood Center [pictured at left] was finished in May. The center will house retail and mercantile uses on the bottom floor and a senior citizen center on the second floor. The top floor consists of eight residential units.
The center was constructed as a joint project between the city and local nonprofit group Interfaith Neighbors. The city maintains ownership of the senior center, although Interfaith Neighbors owns the rest of the building, Sammet said. An Asbury Park Senior Center was once located in First Avenue Pavilion, Sammet said, until 2004. After that, the seniors rented space in Asbury Towers and Phillips Seaview Tower.
The new senior center includes a kitchen, a multi-purpose room and a kiln for ceramics, Sammet said.
