Kushner wants to remove Monmouth Mall's parking garage. How would that affect retail?

EATONTOWN – Kushner Cos. wants to demolish the three-story parking deck at Monmouth Mall because it said it's become unsafe, according to a site plan proposal the company submitted to the Planning Board.

In its place, Kushner is proposing a smaller surface parking lot, which means in all likelihood it would leave them deficient in the parking requirements for the mall.

The plan was supposed to go before the board on Monday for a remote public hearing, but technical issues with the livestream caused the hearing to be postponed to March 7. Kushner didn't get a chance to start its presentation before the meeting was stopped.

The existing parking deck, which is next to Boscov's, has 953 spots for vehicles to park. Kushner is only proposing to create 315 parking spaces with the new lot, which would result in a net loss of 638 spaces.

Kushner is proposing to reduce the mall's commercial space to 1,463,810 square feet, a reduction of 25,781 square feet, to offset any deficiencies in parking requirements.

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Board engineer Edward Hermann of T&M Associates, the board's engineer, reviewed the plan, and, in his written response, said Kushner has to provide testimony regarding how the retail space reduction will be accomplished and where throughout the site it would occur.

Redevelopment pains

In 2016, Kushner announced ambitious plans to overhaul the Monmouth Mall, which it said was losing business to online shopping or e-commerce. The original plan called for a "live, work, play" town center-type model. Along with opening up portions of the mall proper for an outdoor corridor, the proposal called for 700 apartments on the mall's rear perimeter.

That same year the borough rezoned the mall property to create the Mixed Use Regional Center, or MURC, which allows for a multi-purpose commercial, residential, and recreational development.

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Kushner's plan was approved in 2018, but since then it has returned to the board with modifications, such as scrapping the outdoor corridor for a glass atrium or winter garden, next to Boscov's.

To date, however, the only addition to the mall has been one medical building under construction now, with another planned.

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In December, the borough designated the mall as an area in need of redevelopment, which would give it more creative control over future changes at the struggling mall.

At the same time, the designation leaves the window open for the owner to ask for a 30-year tax abatement, known as a PILOT, or payment in lieu of taxes. No such arrangement has been proposed though.

Kushner is appealing its taxes from 2018 through 2021. Kushner pays about $4.2 million a year on taxes on the mall, which, with all lots combined, is assessed at $184 million, according to records from the Tax Court of New Jersey.

When Jersey Shore native Dan Radel is not reporting the news, you can find him in a college classroom where he is a history professor. Reach him @danielradelapp; 732-643-4072; dradel@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Monmouth Mall NJ: Kushner plan for parking lot will reduce retail