Long Branch looking to add amphitheater and bandshell to City Hall landscape

LONG BRANCH - An amphitheater and bandshell are the centerpieces to an outdoor improvement design that city officials hope will win them a matching Open Space grant from Monmouth County.

The city is looking for a match of $250,000 from the county, for a total project cost of $500,000.

The proposed spot is between City Hall and the Public Library, which is in the middle of a major renovation . City Administrator Charles Shirley said the idea sprang partly from the work at the Carnegie-era library after they broke up the concrete to install a generator.

The other motivation for it comes from across the street, at the corner of Lippincott Avenue and Broadway, where a developer is proposing to build an apartment building with ground-floor retail spaces . The lots have been vacant for some time and the city just designated the one-acre site a redevelopment area, which helped consolidate the lots into the same zoning rules.

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The designation gives the city some control over that design. The city would like the developer to put a clock tower on the building and a crosswalk with lighting connecting the site to Slocum Park, the public library and City Hall.

"We looked at it and said this whole area needs to be redone. This is a community space. This is where we do our veteran services, National Night Out, Christmas tree lighting," Shirley said of the space between City Hall and the library.

The space now has pavers and benches. The city is proposing to replace them with new a patio design made of pavers and complimented with benches, tables and walking paths. The plan is also to install Intellistreets-brand smart light posts that function as decorative lighting, while providing WiFi connections and a sound system.

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Shirley said it could take six months before the city gets an answer from the county on the matching Open Space grant application.

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: Long Branch looking to add amphitheater and bandshell to City Hall landscape