The future of Fort Hancock, including its historic buildings, will be decided by a new reuse plan. Washington will be playing a more prominent role in the future of historic Fort Hancock with the establishment of an advisory committee selected by the Secretary of the Interior with the approval of the White House. The committee will work to establish plans for the future of the fort. According to a notice in the Federal Register: “The Secretary of the Interior … is announcing the establishment of the Gateway National Recreation Area Fort Hancock 21st Century Advisory Committee.”
The purpose of the committee “is to advise the Secretary through the director of the National Park Service, on the development of a reuse plan and on matters relating to future uses of the Fort Hancock Historic Landmark District of Gateway National Recreation Area. The notice states that the committee will “provide guidance to the National Park Service in developing a plan for reuse of more than 30 historic buildings that the NPS has determined are excess to its needs and eligible for lease.”
The notice lists the groups that will send representatives to the committee, but said that members are not limited to these interest groups, which include the natural resource, business, cultural resource, real estate, recreation, education, hospitality, and scientific communities.
Representatives from Highlands, Sea Bright, Middletown, Rumson, and the Monmouth County Freeholders are also included, the notice states.
Written nominations for the committee were accepted up to May 3.
Freeholder Lillian Burry has been nominated for the committee, according to a county public information officer, and George Conway and Susan Dulczak have been named to represent Sea Bright, according to a borough official.
John Warren, acting public affairs officer for the park service, said there is “no timetable for when the selections will be made. When they occur, the selections will be publicly announced.”
He said that the average time to set up such a committee is about a year and Gateway is “within the time frame.”
Warren said that once the committee members are chosen by the Secretary of the DOI and approved by the White House, those interested in the future of the fort can contact these members with comments and can also attend committee meetings.
In 1999 the park service selected James Wassel of Rumson to renovate and commercially develop 36 or more buildings at historic Fort Hancock, a venture that was met with strong local opposition and eventually failed.
Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6th District) who has been a strong opponent of commercial development of Fort Hancock and the Wassel lease said in a statement on Aug. 3, “I hope that the advisory committee established by the National Parks Service includes local residents who have been involved in the issue of preserving Fort Hancock, specifically those who have opposed the commercialization of Sandy Hook. Fort Hancock played an important role in the history of our nation and state and should be preserved for future generations.”
Pallone has urged the park service to lease the buildings to nonprofit groups.
Save Sandy Hook, a grassroots group formed to oppose the Wassel lease, and Monmouth County Friends of Clearwater unsuccessfully filed suits in court to overturn the lease.
The 60-year lease granted to Wassel by the park service in 2004 for the buildings was canceled in 2009 after the developer was given a series of extensions to demonstrate that he had the financial means to complete the project of renovating the buildings.
In 2007 another lease gave Wassel control of the former park headquarters, which he used for his company, Sandy Hook Partners, and theater and chapel buildings, which he rented out for weddings and other events. This lease was also canceled by the park service.
In another action related to Sandy Hook, the park service held meetings on Aug. 3 and 8 at Sandy Hook regarding the management plan being drawn up for Gateway National Recreation Area, which includes Sandy Hook. Warren said that more meetings about the plan will be held in September.