Toms River Set To Approve $3.3M Purchase Of Downtown Hotel

TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Toms River Township Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday night on the township's $3,3 million purchase of a downtown motel that has been a thorn in the town's side for years.

The ordinance to approve the township's purchase of the Red Carpet Inn is up fo a final reading and public hearing, according to the meeting agenda.

The council appropriated $4.8 million for the motel purchase in February at a meeting where some residents questioned why the township would spend the funds at all, while others, including advocates for the homeless, urged the township to convert the building into a homeless shelter.

Township officials have said the plan instead is to tear down the motel, in part because where it sits at the corner of Main and West Water Street has flooding issues that will be addressed by removing the building and reconfiguring the area.

Tearing it down also is part of what townhip officials and officials with the Downtown Toms River business improvement district hope will draw redevelopers with the goal of creating a transit village that will draw younger residents who want walking access to downtown and to transit options.

The purchase of the motel also finalizes the efforts to shut down the motel wihch has been a thorn in the town's side for years. In November, the township filed a nuisance complaint against the motel, citing more than 750 police calls since 2015. Many of those incidents involved serious offenses including narcotics, weapons and theft. Police arrested 15 people at the motel in early October in a quality-of-life raid at the motel, police said. The problems at the motel existed for much longer.

In late November, the township adopted an ordinance requiring anyone staying at a motel or hotel in Toms River to present government-issued photo identification that the motel must photocopy and keep on file with the room registration record.

The motel property was listed for sale on Dec. 13 with Leaftree Real Estate, according to the listing on Loopnet.com, with an asking price of $4.7 million. The listing referred to it as a redevelopment opportunity.

.The council meeting begins at 6 p.m.

Photo by Karen Wall, Patch staff