A state appellate court has upheld Belmar’s approval of a developer’s plan to demolish the Belmar Inn and a home next door that borough officials have dubbed an “animal house,” to make way for condominiums.
The appellate ruling affirms the Belmar zoning board’s 2023 decision to grant 11 variances to allow the developer, Edelman Investment Group, to construct a four-story, 24-unit condominium on 12th Avenue, a block from the ocean.
The ruling gives the green light to a project that was first proposed in 2017 but was opposed by some residents.
The Belmar Inn is taking reservations and expected to remain open till the end of 2025, but this summer is likely to be its last. “We are still going to be open for 2025 and most likely into 2026,” said inn owner Dave Mavani.
Some property owners on 12th Avenue sued to stop the project, fearing that the condo building would block ocean breezes and bring more noise and traffic into the neighborhood. They argued the Belmar zoning board acted arbitrarily and unreasonably when it granted the variances for the project’s height, footprint and setback.
The appellate court, in upholding a lower court ruling, rejected that argument. It found that the Belmar zoning board’s decision to grant variances was consistent with the borough master plan, which encourages the phasing out of rooming houses.
The Belmar inn is one of the last rooming houses left in Belmar, as the Jersey Shore town continues its shift from rowdy summer resort to a quieter, all-year-round community.
Another old seaside rooming house, The White House, was demolished in 2023 and replaced by townhouses. That leaves the Mayfair Hotel on Ocean Avenue (at 10th Avenue) as the last oceanfront rooming house in Belmar.
“We are a town in transition,” said William J. Shipers, one of the partners in the Edelman Investment Group.
Shipers said the plan is for a “high-end” condominium with a rooftop terrace to replace the Belmar Inn, which has stood on 12th Avenue for about 80 years and offers cheap accommodations.
The plan also calls for demolition of the so-called “animal house” next door to the Belmar Inn, which borough officials have complained is overrun by party crowd in the summertime, according to the ruling.
According to Booking.com, a room at the Belmar Inn costs $125 for a weeknight in July, the height of the summer season. Cheap rooms tend to draw a clientele that is younger, rowdier and more transient – which the borough doesn’t want, according to the ruling.
Borough officials testified in favor of the condo project when it was re-introduced in 2021. They argued that demolishing the Belmar Inn would remove a “blight” on the neighborhood, while creating more parking and increasing property values, according to the ruling.
“Public commentators who supported the proposed development felt it was the only way to get rid of the Belmar Inn,” the appellate court wrote.
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