Bayview Condos

Board rejects Bayview condos
e-published04/07/2006
Wildwood Leader

By Bill Barlow
Staff Writer


LOWER TOWNSHIP – After a second lengthy meeting devoted entirely to one application, the township zoning board rejected a plan by a 5-2 vote to put a 24-unit condominium project at 8100 Bayview Drive in Diamond Beach, the site of the current Bayview Inn.
Board members made clear at the Thursday, April 6 meeting that they would have been willing to grant a use variance to allow a residential development at the property, which is zoned for business. But while two board members supported the proposal, most indicated the project was just too big for the site.

The proposal called for four buildings with six units in each, including two townhouses and four apartments. As proposed, the buildings needed a height variance and other variances.

The application was opposed by neighbors and the borough of Wildwood Crest, which almost surrounds the property, part of which overlooks Sunset Lake. The property is connected to the Diamond Beach section of the township by a narrow stretch of land, although the Crest municipal boundary actually separates the property from Bayview Drive. Access to the land is allowed through an existing easement from that borough.
Frank Corrado, an attorney representing developers JWR Construction, argued that the unique placement of the property dictated some details of the plan. Also, he said, it only makes sense for the property to be zoned residential, given the fact that it is surrounded by residential uses.

He went on to say the proposed project would be a better fit for the neighborhood than the exiting use as a bar and restaurant. Plans called for the restaurant to be demolished if the residential use was approved, but indications were that it would remain open through the summer in any case.

Corrado said after the meeting that he was not sure what his clients would do in light of the rejection.

Doreen Corino, an attorney representing Wildwood Crest, and Jeffrey Barnes, a lawyer hired by a neighbor of the restaurant, spoke against the application.
Corino said the neighbors had no concerns about the Bayview, and did not want to see the proposed plans built.

Plans were also dependent upon access to the county sewer system through the Crest, using the same pipe the restaurant now uses. Crest officials plan to block that use, which Corrado indicated would likely end up in court.

While opponents of the plan cited density, two board members said that compared to what has already been built across the street in the Crest, the proposed project left a lot of room. They said in some areas of the Crest, a person could not stretch out his arms between the houses.

The application was heard at the March meeting, dominating that agenda because of the lengthy testimony. This month, the application was the first on the agenda, with numerous applications set to follow. After 10:30 p.m., however, the board indicated it would not hear any other applications that night, either