OCEAN CITY – The first new condominium construction project to come before the Planning and Zoning Commission in almost seven years was approved this week.
On Tuesday evening, the commission reviewed and approved a site plan for the 12-unit condominium project. The architect and designer of the project is Atlantic Planning Development & Design, Inc. The owner and developer is 57th Street Bayside Development, LLC, and the company’s multiple partners include Jeff Thaler, Lou Bush, Harry Singh and Larry Pack.
The project is five levels high with three-bedroom, and two-bath condominium units. The first level has covered car parking and an external pool and the other levels each have three units.
Currently, the property holds a single-family home that has been vacant for at least three years and has become dilapidated. The neighbors to the south are the Jamaica, a four-unit condo building; Fager’s Lighthouse to the west; and Maui Miniature Golf to the east.
The new building, which will be called The View, will be facing the southwest and sit diagonally on the property to take advantage of the most open view of the bay.
“When you will be on the balcony, you will be facing West Ocean City,” Thaler said. “We called it, The View, because everybody we brought out there said, ‘This view is amazing.’
With little discussion or concern, Commission member Chris Shanahan made a motion to approve the site plan based on staff recommendations and the commission voted 4-0 to approve, with Joel Brous and Thomas Singman absent, and Peck Miller recusing himself.
Thaler pointed out to the commission the new condo building will become a marker in Ocean City history as it will be the first new approved condo project in almost seven years.
“It is wonderful to see it,” Chairperson Pam Buckley said.
On Thursday, Thaler explained the project confirms a new market confidence.
“We just feel that the tide is turning and there are people in the market looking for new units,” he said. “There are probably at least 600 units on the market in Ocean City but they all were built in 2005 or earlier. There is nothing new on the market. All the real estate agents are yelling for some product that people want, so the idea here is that we are building a new product.”
According to Thaler, each unit is priced around $400,000.
“This is really the start. We feel that 2001 is here again where people want to come back to Ocean City and buy something new,” he said.