CAPE MAY — The city’s Planning Board adjourned Sept. 9 without hearing public comment on Frank Investment’s application to build condos above the stores and demolish the auditorium section of the Beach Theatre.
After almost three hours of testimony from the theater’s owners, the meeting was adjourned and will continue Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. when public comment will be heard.
Frank Investment’s Attorney Steven Nehmad and Architect Stephen Fenwick presented plans for building six condominiums built above nine existing retail stores fronting on Beach Avenue. The Beach Avenue side of the complex would become three stories.
The closing of the theater lobby would create one additional store. The buildings front facade and retail space would remain.
Nehmad noted the city’s Historic Preservation Commission approved a preliminary site plan and a demolition of the auditorium section one year ago.
He called the proposed changes a “significant upgrade.” Fenwick said the theater was “functionally obsolete.”
The Beach Theatre Foundation has a lease on the property ending March 31, 2009 with an option to purchase the property. If the foundation is unable to find a developer to buy the theater complex, Frank Investments intends to move forward with its plans, said Nehmad.
Fenwick said the lobby for the condominiums would be located off Stockton Place where an elevator would be located. A cupola would grace the corner.
With the demolition of the theater, the mass of the building will be significantly reduced on Stockton Place, said Fenwick.
He said the state was encouraging residential use over retail shops as part of Smart Growth initiatives, a permitted use in the C2 Business Zone.
Fenwick said the building would have a metal roof, clapboard siding, solid shutters “not plastic,” a Victorian balustrade and brackets.
He said four condos would be two-story units with two one-story condos on the corner of Stockton and Beach Avenue. Each two-story unit would have its own elevator with three bedrooms and three baths on the upper floor, said Fenwick.
Each condo unit will have a parking space in a garage with another space directly behind that under a carport providing a total of 26 spaces for residents.
Frank Investments is requesting a variance to allow it to use stacked parking, which is only permitted to be used by Victorian hotels in Cape May under zoning regulation. Stacked parking involves the need to shuffle cars since one car would be blocking another car’s access to a drive aisle or street.
Engineer for the project, Steve Filipone said the property should have provided 197 parking spaces to accommodate a 550-seat theater, retail space, a 40-seat restaurant and employees but currently has only 13 spaces, a deficit of 184.
He said no part of the theater complex conforms to the city’s 10-foot setback requirement but with removal of the theater, a large portion of the property would be brought back into conformance. He said total lot coverage would be reduced from 94.6 percent to 93.1 percent.
A total of 66 parking spaces would be required for the project by zoning regulations but 26 spaces are proposed or a deficit of 40 spaces, said Filipone. He said the project reduced the extent of non-conformity by 131 parking spaces, which would benefit a three to four block radius from the theater.
Filipone said eliminating the theater use of the complex would reduce generation of traffic trips at the peak hour from 169 per to 42 trips or a 75 percent reduction.
The applicant was also seeking waivers from environmental impact, traffic and recycling studies.
Attorney Eric Garrabrant, hired by Barbara Skinner and her non-profit organization, Environmental Preservation and American Heritage Institute, questioned if condominiums were allowed to be constructed above retail units when a city ordinance specified “apartments.”
Nehmad said the form of ownership was irrelevant. He said the term “apartment” in the ordinance did not specify the unit had to be leased or rented.
Susan Tischler, board secretary of the Beach Theatre Foundation read a statement from the organization indicating the non-profit group was not allowed to comment on the application as part of its lease agreement with Frank Investments.
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