The mayor's plan to provide more commercial and less residential space downtown has the backing of the Planning Board. But council apparently has the votes. And council wants an outside firm's opinion about the best course of action.
“We have a difference of opinion as to the number and size of units that should go over certain stores,” Council President Jack Thomas said. “The real issue we have is that in order to develop the downtown, there must be some level of residential development.”
Lately, builders have favored summer homes over summer shops like those found on Asbury Avenue. To ensure the downtown keeps its retail and restaurant presence, Thomas said the city should relax rules about residential development on second and third floors.
“We're saying if you don't give (property owners) enough incentive to redevelop their property, they're just not going to do it,” Thomas said. “And you'll get a tired-looking downtown.”
Allowing more residential construction downtown might be carrot enough to motivate them.
“It's the carrot and the sledgehammer,” Perillo countered.
Council's approach ends up creating tiny stores beneath massive vacation condominiums that likely will remain empty eight months of the year, he said.
“You end up creating very large residential units and shrinking space for commercial development,” he said. “You've accomplished nothing and gone backwards.”
More downtown homes mean more demand for precious downtown parking. And the more residential units, the more affordable housing the city will have to provide, Perillo said.
“We know residents who live downtown spend more money than anyone who works downtown or visitors. We want a reasonable number of people living downtown,” Thomas said.
Council suggests hiring a marketing expert to examine housing trends. These expert recommendations could help council shape zoning laws to draw more people downtown, he said.
“We'd hire an expert to tell us what the trends are; who, if anyone, would be interested in moving downtown,” he said.
Likewise, council proposes leasing public parking spaces in its downtown lots to free up spots on Asbury Avenue. This would raise money to buy more public parking downtown, Thomas said.
With a flat real-estate market, now is an opportune time to change zoning downtown, Thomas said.
Council will host a meeting 5 p.m. Tuesday to discuss its options.
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