The Seaside Heights planning board met this week for just a matter of minutes, pushing back the hearings on two applications at the request of their representatives.
211 Sampson Avenue (Credit: Google Maps)
The first involved the property at 211 Sampson Avenue, which had already been adjourned previously by the board after a meeting notice was deemed defective. This time, attorney Anthony Pagano requested more time for his client to present their case. The applicant, Sampson Holdings LLC, is proposing to subdivide the 10,000 square foot property into three lots – two standard 20-by-100 foot lots and one 60-by-100 foot lot.
The application had previously drawn some interest from neighboring residents. The new hearing date will be Nov. 3, 2025.
308-310 Sampson Avenue (Credit: Google Maps)
The second application to be pushed back covered the properties at 308-310 Sampson Avenue. The property owner currently has three structures on the oversized lot, and is seeking approval to demolish two of the small single-family homes in the front portion near the street, replace them with two new homes, and keep a larger multi-family dwelling in the rear of the lot.
The rear building consists of four units over two floors. The two street-facing units are single-story dwellings with one unit each. The owner’s plan, as proposed, is to tear down the two small homes and replace them with three-story single-family dwellings. Board members cautioned the applicant over parking concerns, however, noting that technically, six dwelling units would normally require 12 parking spaces. The application proposes three parking spaces for the three units, two of which would be located on the first level of the front-facing homes since they would be raised for flood code compliance. The expanded driveway, however, would cause the borough to lose two on-street parking spaces that already exist.
“There are also some concerns over cars hanging out over the sidewalk,” said board engineer Michael Goldstein at a workshop meeting held over the summer.
The applicant was ready to have their case heard this week, however a change to the board resulted in a coincidental circumstance which forced Pagano, who also represents this property owner, to request another adjournment. Since the application requires two use variance – or “D” variances – the planning board must act as a zoning board under state land use statutes, and the applicant must receive a supermajority of members voting in favor of the project for approval.
The nine member board reduces to a seven-members board, with support from five members required. A new board member sworn in at the meeting, Michelle Humphrey, happened to live within 200-feet of the property in question, meaning she was disqualified from hearing the case by law. Another board member who serves as the mayor’s designee is also unable to hear the case as a matter of state law.
Pagano chose to wait until the Nov. 3, 2025 meeting to proceed, when two additional board members would be present. A supermajority would be statistically easier to achieve with a full board, and such a request is common at hearings in towns across the state with combined planning-zoning boards.
The Nov. 3, 2025 meeting is expected to begin at 6 p.m. in the municipal courtroom over the fire house.
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