BERKELEY – If you walk down Louis Avenue today, you won’t see much but trees and won’t hear much except for some rustling in the underbrush and the distant drone of Route 9. And for now, that’s how it’s going to stay.
A small condo complex has been stopped, as the application to build this development has been pulled.
According to plans first reported in The Berkeley Times in 2021, “Dream Homes at the Pines” was mapped out on 2.3 acres between Louis Avenue and Ocean Gate Turnpike. Two, three-story buildings would contain 17 homes. The development would have essentially wrapped around a single family home that is currently at the intersection of Louis and Ocean Gate Drive.
A December 26, 2024 letter from Salvatore Alfieri, the attorney representing the developer, to the Berkeley Planning Board said “my client does not intend to proceed at this time and therefore, I respectfully request that my client’s application be withdrawn without prejudice.”
This doesn’t mean that the property won’t be developed in the future. It means that this particular plan is dead. The township zoned this property for multi-family homes years ago.
Still, local residents and environmentalists are celebrating.
“While there is still work to be done, today is a win worth celebrating thanks to the community’s hard work and we could not be happier,” said Save Barnegat Bay Executive Director Britta Forsberg.
“Save Barnegat Bay was first made aware of this development about two years ago by a concerned neighbor, Joanne Hannemann, who lived just on the border of where the condo project was expected to break ground,” she said. “We feel strongly that an informed and empowered community is the best defense we have at protecting the cherished natural spaces around our watershed and we are honored to have been able to help leaders like Joanne lead the charge in defending their home waters.”
Save Barnegat Bay had reviewed the developer’s application and permits. They also visited that location.
This was the proposed layout for the development in 2021. Louis Avenue is at the bottom of the map. Ocean Gate Turnpike goes by on the bottom right. (Photo by Chris Lundy)
“The areas of Berkeley and Ocean Gate, particularly the ecologically sensitive areas surrounding Jeffrey’s Creek have been overburdened significantly due to a long list of development projects and we are extremely grateful to the community members who made sure these condos were not another item added to that list,” she said.
“This application being withdrawn is a huge win for the natural and open spaces of Berkeley and Ocean Gate, but there is still work to be done to ensure that this land stays protected and this project doesn’t get picked up by another developer,” she said. “To that point, Save Barnegat Bay would very much be in favor of helping Berkeley Township and the current property owner work with the Ocean County Natural Lands Trust to facilitate an agreement that would see these woods protected forever as open space.”
In 2023, when Hannemann complained to the governing body about the proposed condos on the parcel of land, then-Mayor Carmen Amato told her “we tried to buy it,” and preserve it as open space. However, the property owner had a contract with local developer Dream Homes already.
Recently, science students performed tests on the water of Jeffrey’s Creek (the duck pond in Ocean Gate). They measured levels of such things as dissolved oxygen, nitrates, fecal coliform, turbidity, and pH, all of which will give a good idea of the health of the creek. A Save Barnegat Bay representative said that this came from a Student Grant Research Experience program with the purpose of monitoring the water quality at Jeffrey’s Creek and identifying the potential threats that may be impacting its systems. It was not done with the proposed development in mind.
The post Condos Canceled; Woods To Stay As Woods appeared first on Jersey Shore Online.
