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Local developer Pat Fasano said he’s had enough.

The Asbury Park resident said he will pull his proposed Dollar Tree store development at the former Getty gas station site and refurbishment of the Main Street block between Third and Fourth Avenues [shown in its current state above].

“I’m not interested,” Fasano said via telephone Thursday afternoon. “I’m tired of being abused.”

The Bond Street bar owner, who has developed countless commercial and residential properties across the city, said Tuesday afternoon he will put the land up for rent instead of moving forward.

“Were pulling development of the Dollar Tree because of a lack of support from the City Council and Planning Board and will be putting the land up for rent until the City Council changes or development becomes more progressive,” Fasano wrote in a message to the Sun.

Fasano did receive preliminary approval from the Planning Board on June 1. Those approvals came with the addition of a 21-space parking lot and an off-street receiving area.

The $2.9 million project includes a total redevelopment of the Main Street block between Third and Fourth avenues. Fasano planned to refurbish the current mattress store and grocery store [shown at right] at the Third Avenue corner and build four apartments above it.

“For two years I’ve been telling the Dollar Tree that I will build them a store,” Fasano said via telephone. “It just doesn’t work anymore – I’m barely breaking even building that parking lot.”

During Wednesday night’s City Council meeting, Fasano came before the governing body to plead his case for a tax abatement program known as Payment in lieu of Taxes [PILOT]. Updated tax figures are provided below by the city tax assessor. 

But at least two City Council members have said they will not approve a PILOT unless a developer agrees to hire a certain percentage of its workforce from within city limits and/or offer training needed to fill those job being created by development.

Council members want Fasano to stipulate as part of his lease agreement with Dollar Tree that they will hire a certain percentage of Asbury Park residents.

Quinn said via telephone Thursday that the PILOT agreement has yet to be voted on.

“All we are saying is have a conversation with us about this,” Quinn said. “[Fasano] has  been working on this for two years but he’s only asked the city for a tax abatement months ago. All we are saying is let’s have a conversation. The can move forward without a tax abatement or he can ask for an abatement and have a conversation about hiring locally.”

But Fasano said, “What they saying is that the citizens of Asbury Park are unable to get jobs without my mandate. Do you really think people will be driving from Ocean County to get a minimum wage job in Asbury? The fact is probably 50 to 60 percent of those hired at the Dollar Tree would be Asbury Park residents.”

Fasano Properties Vice President of Development William Stuckey said the project’s current local and state DOT approvals are valid for five years.

Asbury Park Tax assessor Erick Aguilar offered updated tax figures after time of press:

“If the project is completed and conventionally taxed, the developer will pay $128,481 over 5 years,” Aguilar said. “The municipal portion of that will be $73,234. If the project is given the PILOT as proposed in the resolution- the developer will pay $76,961 over 5 years. The municipal portion will be $76,961.”

The developer would save $51,520 over the 5 years but the municipality would keep 3,727 more under the abatement agreement than it would under conventional taxes, Aguilar said.

Here is the breakdown under conventional taxes:

Total Est Taxes (After Reno)	Year	Municipal Portion (57%)
$24,200	2016	$13,794
$24,926	2017	$14,208
$25,674	2018	$14,634
$26,444	2019	$15,073
$27,237	2020	$15,525
$128,481		$73,234

Here is the breakdown under the PILOT:

Est Total PILOT	Year	Municipal Portion (100%)
$0	2016	$0
$7,251	2017	$7,251
$14,937	2018	$14,937
$23,078	2019	$23,078
$31,694	2020	$31,694
$76,961		$76,961

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