Plans must be resubmitted to planning board
By BILL BARLOW/Special to the Sentinel
STRATHMERE – It looks like it’s back to square one for a proposal for new bathrooms for the beach bar at The Deauville Inn.
A site plan review for the popular waterfront business was on the agenda for the Thursday, May 20, meeting of the Upper Township Planning Board. The proposal was held over from the previous meeting after the board requested a detailed review of the plans by the township planner. But the review was not ready in time and township planner Tiffany Cuviello was not able to attend the virtual meeting.
Jeffrey Barnes, the board’s attorney, cited an excessive workload. The board members did not have access to her report by the start of the meeting, and it also meant that she would not be available to be cross-examined by the Deauville’s attorney, Dorothy McCrosson.
McCrosson suggested the matter be held off for a future meeting.
“I really think the board should table us,” she said.
But Barnes went further, suggesting the application be withdrawn entirely and resubmitted, with the understanding that the township would waive the application fees.
The issues go beyond a proposal for permanent bathrooms at the outside beach bar near the foot of the Strathmere toll bridge, although that is what brought The Deauville in front of the board to begin with. Tim Fox and Robyn Kjar bought the long-running business for $3.5 million in 2019, launching an extensive renovation project that has drawn praise from several quarters.
Much of that work has been completed inside the historic building. Last summer, with strict protocols associated with COVID-19, many customers stayed outside, including on the beach along Strathmere Bay.
This year, the business put forward a plan to install plumbing in an existing building between the restaurant and the beach bar to create new restrooms. Until now, the outside section has relied on restrooms in a portable trailer on site. One of the few places in Cape May County where someone can get beer, wine or a cocktail with their feet in the sand and a view of the water, the beach bar was a popular attraction even before the couple purchased the business. This year, a series of picnic tables with matching green umbrellas already line the beach in advance of Memorial Day weekend.
The site plan application also included a proposal to make the awning on the outside deck permanent instead of seasonal, according to discussions at the meeting on Thursday.
But when the application went before the board on April 15, neighbors wanted to talk about more than bathrooms. Several complained about parking issues at the site and about what they see as excessive noise when bands perform on the beach. They were not happy about the inclusion of a bandstand at the site.
On summer weekends in 2020, cars lined both sides of the street leading to the toll bridge and crowded the surrounding neighborhoods, with some patrons parking on the far side of the bridge along the radio tower and walking over.
The April meeting ended without a decision from the board. In the first meeting in May, Barnes reported Thursday, the board asked the planner to investigate the property and report back. Barnes said he’s seen a draft of the report, even though it was not ready to present to the board, and indicated it cited several discrepancies between the current use of the site and what the board approved for the beach bar in 2006.
That includes parking issues, he said.
But there are additional complications.
For one, the most recent site plan application did not include the breakfast restaurant close to the Deauville, what for years operated as an Uncle Bill’s location. That property has long had an agreement with The Deauville Inn over use of its parking lot. Both businesses are now owned by Fox, which means the restaurant property should be included in the plans.
But that means that board member Ted Kingston, who spoke at length about the application at a previous meeting, has property within 200 feet of the site under review, because the inclusion of the breakfast place moved the line closer to his property.
That means Kingston has a conflict of interest and will not be able to vote or participate in the discussions as a board member. According to Barnes, Kingston will be able to participate as a member of the public, but his previous participation as a member of the Planning Board raises issues with the board’s review of the application.
What’s more, Barnes reported that the installation of the restrooms may not need Planning Board review anyway. He said it would be a cleaner record if owners withdrew the application and submitted a new one.
He also said the venue for the application will change, as the board prepares to return to meeting in person after a year of remote meetings. Members expect the next Planning Board meeting to take place at Township Hall rather than virtually.
“It sounds like we need to start all over again,” McCrosson said.
But she told the board it was the bathroom proposal that led to the site plan application to begin with.
“Had we been told that we did not need site plan approval when we applied this never would have been before the board in the first place,” she said.
But Barnes indicated the matter is far from settled.
“I don’t want anyone to leave the call thinking that the applicant does not have an issue pending that is going to need to be in front of this board,” he said. “They have issues in regard to the site plan itself that need to be addressed.”
Without seeing the planner’s report or having a chance to question her, McCrosson said, there is nothing established that the current operation is anything other than conforming to the existing zoning. But she said the owners would cooperate with the board and submit a new application.