Final phase of Pier Village approved

BY KENNYWALTER Staff Writer

The third and final phase of Pier Village, a mixed-use redevelopment along the Long Branch beachfront, is ready for construction.

The Long Branch City Council approved the plan during the May 22 meeting for the development that will include a hotel, retail, residential component and public space, including a play area, concert stage and carousel.

While the conceptual plans have been approved, the Long Branch Planning Board will vote on the site plan and the council then must approve a parking management plan.

We had a meeting yesterday, and we have people working on it as we speak, Business Administrator Howard Woolley Jr. said. Applied Development Co., Hoboken, is the developer for the 7-acre project bounded by Melrose Terrace to the north, Morris Avenue to the south, Ocean Avenue to the east and Ocean Boulevard to the west.

The council approved the preliminary design for the third phase of the project in 2010, and inApril the developers presented modified plans that include an expanded boardwalk and concert stage as new design elements.

At least one business owner gave mixed reviews to the plans during the meeting, expressing concerns about the viability of the project Dan Pinheiro, owner of Stewarts Root Beer in Pier Village, said he doubts the ability of the new phase to bring more people year-round into the area.

I love the concept, but in the past we were promised a lot of things, he said during the public hearing on the project. Ive been there for six, seven years now, and when I first came I was told Id be coming to a year-round community.

I ended up getting stuck with a store that has four months [of business], and there is not much else I can do, he added. It cant just be promised, it just has to be done.

According to landscape architect Tom Bauer, of Melillio and Bauer, the main difference in the plans presented in April is that a beach access point on Morris Avenue would be preserved.

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Final phase of Pier Village approved