SOMERS POINT — Overlooking the wetlands, Great Egg Harbor Bay and the island of Ocean City across the water, the terrific home at 215 Bay Ave. offers all of the advantages of a shore vacation home with none of the hassles of island life.
Just minutes from two of three bridges into America’s Greatest Family Resort, the impressive three-story single boasts a shore aesthetic with its gray cedar-impression siding and white accents.
Multiple windows provide a fantastic view of the sun rising over the water from multiple vantage points throughout the home, supplying abundant natural light. There also are numerous decks, offering a great spot for watching the wildlife up close.
Mulched beds with shore-inspired shrubs line the front porch and wrap around the sides to the spacious backyard, where mature trees shield it from neighboring homes. There’s a concrete patio beneath the screened porch with access to the ground-floor cabana space and garage, with carpeted stairs ascending to the main living area.
In addition, there is an enclosed outside shower for washing away sand after a day relaxing on the beach.
Parking is never a problem as their is plenty of room on the street, as well as in the concrete parking pad bordered by bricks and inside the garage.
Four pillars support a covered front porch accessible only from inside, sheltering the garage door. To the left, wood steps rise to a second front porch, which wraps around the side.
The front door opens into a stately foyer, where the dark Brazilian hardwood flooring steals the show.
A coat closet is to the left, alongside wooden stairs with a carpet inlay rising to the second floor. A large cutout into the formal living room to the right creates an open layout, which is enhanced by the ceiling rising straight up to the roof line in the front.
A two-sided gas fireplace is shared by this space and a more casual living room just off the kitchen, where built-in curio shelves flank the wooden mantel and double swinging doors open onto the front porch.
Behind the formal living room is the dining room with access to the screened porch, where 16 casement windows let the bay breeze flow through.
Located in the back corner, the kitchen features abundant wood cabinets with granite countertops that wrap around three sides, plus a two-level peninsula with barstool seating. Stainless-steel appliances complete the room.
A full bathroom is off to the side, near the steps to the garage.
The second floor features a spacious carpeted hallway overlooking the foyer below. There are three bedrooms and a hall bathroom.
The primary bedroom, in the front corner, has a lofty cathedral ceiling that slopes down to each side and a door provides access to the private bayfront porch. There’s also a walk-in closet, laundry closet and full bathroom with a dual-sink vanity, shower and alcove of windows.
Somers Point is a former shipbuilding town with a long recorded history dating back to the 1720s, when Richard Somers built his home atop a knoll overlooking the bay. Prior to that, it was a summer retreat for the Lenni Lenape tribe.
Known as Somers Mansion, the house remained in the family until 1937 when it was deeded to the Atlantic County Historical Society. It later was transferred to the state in 1941 and now is recognized as a State Historic Site. It is open for tours.
The city boasts an exciting night life with multiple long-established watering holes both along Bay Avenue and up on Shore Road. The Historic Bayfront District is home to restaurants large and small, as well as period homes and several marinas.
The city is home to the Somers Point Historical Society Museum as well as the Atlantic County Historical Society headquarters. The former City Hall now is home to a branch of the county library system and is decorated with a mural depicting the life of Master Commandant Richard Somers, who was born in 1778 in the city named for his family.
Somers, who was appointed a midshipman in the U.S. Navy in 1797, was killed while leading a fireship attack against Tripolitan-backed pirates during the Barbary Wars in 1804. He is recognized as among the first heroes of the fledgling U.S. Navy.
– By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
