Opponents Decry House by Dune, Owner Holds Required Permits

CAPE MAY – Construction has begun on a controversial single family home in what was the back parking lot of the Jetty Motel on Beach Avenue. The property was on the market in 2010 for an asking price of $1.65 million and included a significant portion of an environmentally-sensitive dune. 
The proposed three-story home with a two-story deck would command an ocean view, of the adjacent beach and the Cape May Lighthouse.
The plans submitted by the developer do not directly impact the dune. The footprint of the home is outside the environmentally-sensitive dune area, but it utilizes all of the available property up to the dune line.
The property has been the subject of development plans and opposition for almost a decade. Several meetings were held before the Cape May City Planning Board with opposition from owners of neighboring property dominating the public comment portion of those meetings.
Despite this controversy, the project has gained all required approvals, and this week a contractor began driving the pilings. Those residents who do not want the project to go forward made a last ditch effort to get city intervention with a May 11 letter to a wide group of city officials.
In a post-Sandy world, it is much more common for development proposals near environmentally-sensitive areas to be required to step back a generous distance from a natural structure like a dune. At the time this project was germinating, from 2007 to 2010, permits were a bit less restrictive.
Development could not easily invade a sensitive area, but plans could get approval that stop just short of doing so.
Despite opponents’ concerns, the CAFRA (Coastal Area Facilities Review Act) permit for the property is legal and was granted for the footprint in question in 2010. It was set to expire in 2015.
In 2008, the Permit Extension Act became law. It was passed to provide added flexibility to developers and the real estate industry in general during the sharp economic downturn.
That act was scheduled to run out June 30, 2016, when state response to the financial impact of Hurricane Sandy led to one added year for areas heavily hit by the storm.
What all of this means is that the original state permit for the project would normally have run out in 2015, but it was eligible to be extended under the original act and then gained an added year due to the Sandy provisions.
The permit would expire if construction did not begin by June 30, 2017, thus the beginning of the pilings being placed this week.
In 2010 the Cape May Planning Board gave approval to the project including variances. That approval still stands.
The city had already designated the area a “development center” freeing it from certain regulations as long as the dune itself was not infringed.
Neighbors opposed to the project have argued that it would likely not be approved by the state today because of the structure’s proximity to the dune.
They argue that the integrity of the dune may be undermined and thereby endanger other property in the area. They extend their argument to the loss of parking in the area that will result from taking the back parking lot away from the motel. The pressure on parking spaces increases annually in the city.
What is apparent is that the home will be tightly inserted into a space behind two commercial establishments on one side and a dune on the other. 
An easement was needed to be able to reach the property.
Plans to potentially redevelop the adjacent motel were also proposed back in 2010. Whether or not they will be resurrected at some point is unclear.
Meanwhile, construction is moving forward. Residents who hoped a new city administration would intervene say they have not received a reply to their letter.
City officials say that changes to the design since 2010 are not of a nature that would trigger a review of the approved plans.
Mayor Clarence Lear said that he saw little the city could do. “The developer has all the permits and approvals he needs, and there is no basis for further city action.”
State Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) officials acknowledge that the integrity and health of the dune are important and say that they will monitor any impact on the dune from the construction.
If a post-construction compliance evaluation indicates work is needed to restore the dune in any way, it would be dealt with then.
What made this project unusual is the length of time since the plans were approved.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.