ASBURY PARK, NJ-The 130-foot-tall steel frame of a proposed condo tower has stood unfinished for 17 years, ever since its developer went bankrupt. Now, as a symbol of this oceanfront city's long-awaited rebirth, it's finally coming down to make way for a two-building condominium community.
The building skeleton is within the city's 56-acre redevelopment area, where a number of separate projects are under way under the aegis of master developer Asbury Partners. The demolition of the steel frame is slated for this Saturday morning, with city officials setting up bleachers for spectators, closing off several streets and inviting TV camera crews to record the event. "It's finally over, and it's a bright start for this city," councilman James Bruno said yesterday as city officials released details of the implosion.
As reported by GlobeSt.com, the site will be redeveloped as the Esperanza, a 224-unit condo project being developed by the Hoboken, NJ-based Metro Homes. Work on the project will start as soon as remnants of the imploded frame are cleared from the site, according to Metro Homes' managing partner Dean Geibel. His company is perhaps better known for its various projects along the waterfront in Hudson County, including a recently announced joint venture with Donald Trump in Jersey City.
The implosion will take all of 12 seconds, according to Douglas K. Loizeaux of the Controlled Demolition Inc. His Maryland-based company has had a hand in such demolition projects as the Seattle Kingdome and the remains of the Murrah Federal Office Building in Oklahoma City. The approximately 8,000 tons of steel will be recycled, according to Loizeaux. Originally expected to be incorporated into Metro Homes' project, the steel frame was eventually deemed to be unsafe for that use.
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