Cape May Convention Hall to be Built Closer to Beach Avenue?

CAPE MAY — The rumor mill has been running rampant with the theory the city will have to move the new, proposed Convention Hall 50 feet closer to Beach Avenue to receive approval from the state Department of Environmental Protection.
If the scuttlebutt is true, DEP will not issue a Coastal Area Facilities Review (CAFRA) permit if the city intends to use 50-feet of virgin beach as part of the proposed Convention Hall.
Editorials chastising the city for being closed-mouthed have appeared in two local publications.
Mayor Edward J. Manahey Jr. has refused to comment on the situation. At a Jan. 5 City Council meeting, he told the Herald he would have no comment on Convention Hall for two weeks. He had told the Herald he would comment in two weeks on Dec. 15, 2009.
Mahaney told the Herald that DEP has not yet issued a CAFRA permit for the project and the city was waiting for an approval.
Without discussion, City Council passed a resolution Jan. 5 approving an amendment to its professional services contract with Convention Hall architects Kimmel Bogrette. The resolution states: “Whereas, as a result of changes which are required in order to obtain a Coastal Area Facilities and Review Act (“CAFRA”) permit, which will entail moving the building forward toward Beach Avenue, the City will require enhanced landscaping design in order to achieve an aesthetic streetscape along Beach Avenue and the Promenade.”
The resolution authorized Kimmel Bogrette to enter into a subcontract for landscape design with Think Green (L.L.C), “which includes the schematic design, design development, construction documentation, construction administration and as-built plans, for a total lump sum fee, inclusive of costs, in the amount of $16,116.”
DEP spokesperson Darlene Yuhas told the Herald Jan. 7 the CAFRA permit application for Convention Hall was still being reviewed.
City Manager Bruce MacLeod told the Herald council’s resolution was to engage a landscape architect for design work in the area of the Promenade and the front end of the building.
“It’s not the actual building itself,” he said.
MacLeod said the city’s original application for a CAFRA permit was still open and under review.
He said it was likely the city would hold a special meeting on Convention Hall in two weeks.
In closed session Jan. 5, council discussed “negotiations” with Kimmel Bogrette.
As early as last March, residents were asking about the progress of the city receiving a CAFRA permit.
Mahaney told the Herald April 8, 2009 that Aislinn Gandy, an environmentalist with Fralinger Engineering, who prepared a CAFRA permit application for the new Convention Hall, had traveled to Trenton with City Manager Bruce MacLeod to meet with land use personnel at DEP. He said the CAFRA permit application was formally submitted at that time. The mayor said CAFRA permits generally take six to 12 months to receive from the time of application.
At that time, Mahaney said in a best-case scenario, construction of the new hall could begin in October 2009 with a completion date in late 2010.
In September 2009, Mahaney said the opening date for the new Convention Hall would likely be in early 2011, not in the fall of 2010 as predicted earlier.
The building’s initial design included a main hall that would accommodate 1,151 seats with a soundproof partition to divide the room in half with a floor allowing multiple uses. Three community rooms will be located on the second floor, one room with a capacity for 75 persons and two other with a capacity of six persons.
Three retail stores will occupy the front of the hall.