Planning Board approves Bamboo Holdings’ Boulevard redevelopment with height variance and conditions

Seaside Heights Planning Board voted May 26 to approve a revised redevelopment application by Bamboo Holdings Urban Renewal, LLC for 203 Boulevard that will construct 48 condominium units with retail, amenities and parking, granting a C-variance for building height to 73.25 feet and other design deviations.

Board members and the applicant emphasized that the revised plans respond to workshop comments. Attorney Matthew Heagen presented the revised submission, and architect Jason Hanrahan described design changes including a single enlarged retail space (about 2,200 square feet), a relocated and enlarged trash room with chutes and a compactor, additional bicycle storage adjacent to retail, screened and vented parking, an amenity deck with pool and cabanas, and loft-style top-floor units including two adjacent penthouses. Hanrahan said the top-floor mechanical platform is tucked below the building top to reduce visual impact. “We set the building back from the street to prevent bulkiness,” he said in describing alterations to achieve a more coastal façade.

The board’s technical professionals supported the application with conditions. Redevelopment planner Paul Grygiel and board engineer Mike Goldstein provided review letters and told the board the height deviation is a redevelopment-plan variance under state rules; Grygiel said the deviations do not present a substantial detriment to the neighborhood. Morgan Engineering’s Mathew Wilder testified the revised plans include landscaping (79 plantings), building-mounted dark-sky-compliant lights, bicycle racks, and parking the engineer described as 72 spaces with eight EV spaces and eight compact stalls; earlier application documents listed 74 spaces. Wilder also said the project may rely on older DEP stormwater rules if permitted, because the site’s prior demolition occurred at the borough’s request, but final stormwater compliance may depend on outside approvals.

Board discussion focused on parking, utilities and site operations. Architect and engineer witnesses confirmed utility tie-ins would be on local streets (not the county Boulevard), that garbage collection will be commercial and that the parking garage will be screened to reduce light spill. The board attached three explicit conditions to its approval: the construction office must receive the C-100 exterior rendering to verify the building’s face matches the approved plans; the property must use a commercial garbage company for trash removal; and directional one-way signage must be installed at garage ingress and egress. The motion to adopt the resolution was made by Tom Faragalli, seconded by Steve Sanzone; the minutes record unanimous affirmative votes by the members present.

Board member Paul Firetto praised the revisions, saying the design will “give the town a real wow factor.” The record notes the application still requires several outside approvals, including Ocean County Planning Board review, Ocean County soils review, and CAFRA permitting; the applicant estimated construction could begin in spring 2027 if approvals proceed.

What happens next: the board memorialized the resolution with the stated conditions; the applicant must supply the C-100 rendering to the Construction Department and continue to secure outside permits and agency approvals before construction.