fight loss of homes
to eminent domain
MTOTSA neighbors
fight loss of homes
to eminent domain
BY CHRISTINEVARNO
Staff Writer
CHRISTINE VARNO Amanda King and Geoff Eigenrauch stand on the deck of their oceanfront Long Branch home on Ocean Terrace that may be taken by the city through eminent domain.
LONG BRANCH — Amanda King and Geoff Eigenrauch love their neighborhood so much that when they moved last October because their apartment was too small, they moved to another apartment on the same block.
King, 29, and Eigenrauch, 27, rent their unit at 72 Ocean Terrace, apartment 3. They moved there from their previous apartment at 67 Marine Terrace, where they lived for three years, because they needed more space.
But they did not want to leave their beachfront neighborhood.
When a bigger apartment down the street became available from the same landlord they were renting from at the time, they moved in. King said she never knew that the neighborhood was slated for eminent domain.
"Our neighborhood is more of a family, rather than friends or neighbors," King said. "We know everyone on the block by their first name, every kid, every dog, everyone."
Their home lies in the Beachfront North Redevelopment Zone, designated Phase II. The redevelopment plan calls for bulldozing the three-street (Marine and Ocean terraces and Seaview Avenue) neighborhood and replacing it with condominiums and townhouses.
"Just the thought [of losing her home] brings me to tears," King said. "I don’t know what I would do, I honestly don’t know."
King moved from New Jersey to New Mexico then to Oregon and finally back to New Jersey, and said that living on the Long Branch shore for the past four years has been a blessing.
"This neighborhood means more to me than anything," King said. "We are not a menace to society, we are the ideal society."
King said her home is in a 100-year-old Victorian house with a big kitchen, a back deck and a balcony. It sits just five houses away from the beach.
"Every window you look out has a view of the ocean," King said. "We can see the sunrise from our kitchen window."
King, an office manager at a dentist’s office, and Eigenrauch, a carpenter, are not ready to acquiesce to the city’s plan. They said even though they are renters, they have done and will continue to do whatever they can to save their home from destruction.
They are both active members of the neighborhood alliance, known as MTOTSA [Marine Terrace, Ocean Terrace and Seaview Avenue], formed by the neighborhood to fight to save their homes.
"I have not gone to the meetings [the biweekly City Council meetings] because I am not sure I could control myself," King said. "I do whatever I can outside of the meetings."
The members of MTOTSA have submitted their own redevelopment plan for the city to consider. It consists of revitalizing the neighborhood while keeping their homes a part of the community.
The city has responded to the plan submitted by the MTOTSA group, but details are not being publicized as of this time, according to Bill Nordahl, a resident of Marine Terrace and
MTOTSA member.
King and Eigenrauch have maintained their home even with the threat of losing it. They have painted the house and are in the process of putting up a railing on the outside of the deck to make it safer. They have also dug up weeds and crab grass and are growing a flower garden in the yard.
They said they will continue with upkeep of their home to keep it looking like a viable part of the community.
As the city celebrated Oceanfest on the Fourth of July, the MTOTSA neighborhood hosted an open house and invited the community to come into their neighborhood to see what they are fighting for.
King said that during the open house, two women in their 60s asked her why the neighborhood was hosting the event. After she explained why the MTOTSA group was fighting against what they feel is eminent domain abuse, the woman asked her, "If the mayor [Adam Schneider] offered you $1 million, you would take it, right?"
King said she did not even hesitate before answering, "No, No!"
She said with $1 million she would have enough money to live worry-free for the rest of her life.
"But no matter where I go I will never be lucky enough to live anywhere like I do now," King said. "Not just for the beach, but for my neighbors. These are my best friends, from ages 5 to 98. We are all best friends."