RED BANK: BORO EYES REHAB TAG FOR TWO RIVERFRONT TRACTS

A map produced by the Borough of Red Bank showing the two areas (in yellow) being considered to be added to the “area in need of rehabilitation” (brown). (Photo by Brian Donohue. Click to enlarge.)

By BRIAN DONOHUE

In a move that reflects a flurry of behind-the-scenes movement on two prominent riverfront properties, the Red Bank Mayor and Borough Council will vote Thursday on whether to declare the long-fallow tracts “areas in need of rehabilitation.”

The first property, 80 Rector Place, is the home of a former Exxon station and the site of multiple ill-fated proposals over the past two decades, including a Hampton Inn hotel and a retail cannabis shop, The Garden at Red Bank.

A lawsuit filed by The Garden at Red Bank against the borough hiccupped in recent months amid a possible sale of the property, court records indicate, and the borough’s chief zoning official tells redbankgreen the owner is now seeking to turn it into a parking lot.

The second property on the council’s agenda is already a parking lot – a lot near the foot of Hubbard’s Bridge*, where the owners of the nearby Galleria applied in January for approval to build two waterfront structures housing 40 apartments.

26-28 Shrewsbury Avenue Sourlis parking lot 04012025

The parking lot at 26-28 Shrewsbury Avenue where owners of the nearby Galleria applied to build 40 apartments in January. (photo by Brian Donohue)

The two areas would be added to a large swath of the northwest portion of town already declared in need of rehab (see map above).

An update on the status of the application for the Galleria-owned property, listed as 26-28 Shrewsbury Avenue, was not immediately available.

Earlier this year, borough zoning officials told the applicant, Sourlis International Realty Corp. the project would require several variances from the Zoning Board of Adjustments, according to the January 28 development permit denial signed by Borough Zoning Officer Shawna Ebanks.

A declaration of the property as an area in need of rehabilitation could create new zoning guidelines for the property and allow the borough to use other tools, including five-year tax abatements, to spur development. Unlike the designation “area in need of redevelopment,” the tag does not allow either the use of eminent domain or longer-term tax abatements.

The council is slated to vote on a resolution granting the same “area in need of rehabilitation” designation to 80 Rector Place, a property that has been the subject of years-long zoning battles and seemingly endless litigation.

The former Exxon property was approved for a Hampton Inn Hotel in 2017. That project became mired in litigation and collapsed.

Ye Olde Exxon Station at 80 Rector Place. (photo by Brian Donohue)

The Planning Board approved an application for a cannabis dispensary on the site in December 2023.

Last July, the owners of the business, The Garden at Red Bank sued the borough after it was shut out by an ordinance that limits the number of retail cannabis licenses in town to the three already issued to other sellers.

In a series of court filings earlier this year, attorneys for The Garden at Red Bank sought to modify their original complaint because they believed the property was in the process of being sold to a third party.

But then in July, they sought to withdraw that motion. “Contrary to the Plaintiff’s original understanding, the property has not yet been sold nor has a contract for sale been entered into,” reads a consent order issued by Superior Court judge Andrea Marshall.

The latest development permit application for the property was not immediately available. Ebanks told a reporter Wednesday that the owner has filed plans to turn it into a parking lot. It is also a known contaminated site in the process of remediation, according to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

The meeting of the Mayor and Borough Council begins at 6:30 pm at Borough Hall, 90 Monmouth Street. The full agenda is here. Remote participation is available via the media link (TV icon) on the borough government’s agendas page.

*redbankgreen is fully aware that the bridge named after the family of a Revolutionary War soldier was changed to the name of a former state senator, but prefers to operate in a blissful state of ignorance by pretending people honor local history too much for that to have ever happened.

redbankgreen editor Brian Donohue may be reached via email at [email protected] or by calling or texting 848-331-8331 or yelling his name loudly as he walks by. Do you value the news coverage provided by redbankgreen? Please become a financial supporter if you haven’t already. Click here to set your own level of monthly or annual contribution.