Government

Former Seaside Heights ‘Steel Structure’ Property to be Prepared for 10-Story Tower

by
Daniel Nee
July 8, 2024

The property that once housed the former ‘steel structure’ in Seaside Heights, now slated for redevelopment. (Photo: Shorebeat)

Seaside Heights officials last week said that following a long permitting process, the redevelopment group responsible for building a 10-story, mixed use complex on the site of a demolished “steel structure” along the Boulevard will have access to the site in order to take the next steps in getting construction underway.

The borough council voted unanimously July 3 to grant SSH Boulevard LLC, a group of investors in the redevelopment project, a right-of-entry and license agreement to access the land to prepare it for construction. The property is located along the Boulevard between Webster and Hamilton avenues. For more than a decade, it was home to a rusting steel frame of what was intended to be a nightclub complex in the early 2000s, but after being condemned by the borough, will re-emerge as the mixed-use commercial, restaurant and retail space.

Renderings and plans for the former ‘steel structure’ redevelopment effort, Seaside Heights, N.J. (Source: SSH Redevelopment Plan Deck)

The steel was torn down three years ago, however underground infrastructure beneath the property – which was supposed to have pools and spas similar to casino day clubs – remained. The permitting process was lengthy, and in April, the development group received county permits and was still awaiting some state permits to begin work.

With those permits ostensibly now in hand, initial work can begin, however the redeveloper requires access to the property, which was granted under the resolution passed by the governing body last week.

“They’re going to be doing soil boring tests and some more preliminary construction to start the project,” said Borough Administrator Christopher Vaz.

The access agreement will also allow the redevelopment group to begin removing pilings and other pieces of hard infrastructure that still remain underground and out of sight, a discovery that has also delayed the start of construction on the new building.

“They still have a lot of work ahead of them,” Vaz said recently, explaining that crews will likely have to dig as deep as 120-feet to remove the left-over infrastructure. “There was a swimming pool there with all the infrastructure still in the ground, the pilings were in the ground, and there are some other things they have to get out of there.”

Additional preparatory work will be required after the pilings are removed.

“They’re going to be doing soil boring tests and some more preliminary construction to start the project,” said Vaz, before the council granted the agreement.

Mayor Anthony Vaz has said now that the agreement has been passed, the initial work on the property – which has been self-contained with fencing to avoid interrupting pedestrian and traffic flow during the summer season – can begin, and construction on the new building may be able to start as soon as the fall.

Renderings and plans for the former ‘steel structure’ redevelopment effort, Seaside Heights, N.J. (Source: SSH Redevelopment Plan Deck)

The property that once housed the former ‘steel structure’ in Seaside Heights, now slated for redevelopment. (Photo: Shorebeat)

The redevelopment group SSH Boulevard Urban Renewal LLC is the designated redeveloper of the site. The principals of that ownership group, according to state business records, are Dan Matarese, Zachary Rich, former New Jersey Republican State Committee Chairman Doug Steinhardt and Joanne Gilmore, the wife of Ocean County political powerbroker George Gilmore.

According to attorneys representing the prospective owner, planning approval allows for 77 residential units, a 153-space on-site parking structure, approximately 6,500 square feet of street level retail space, and an approximate 8,500 square foot restaurant with an outdoor balcony on the fourth floor. The building will also feature a rooftop deck, swimming pool, lounge, and multi-purpose room. Additionally, the approved project proposes new landscaping improvements, which include new street planters and benches.