Can Two Ventnor Guys Help Save Atlantic City?

CRDA, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, controls the Atlantic City Tourism District. This area covers all casinos, most commercial districts, Bader Field, and Gardner’s Basin.

Now, after 13 years, AC Mayor Marty Small and City Council want to take back those planning and development duties from CRDA.

Can two CRDA execs, Lance Landgraf and Chris Brown, play peace keeper in this battle for control?

Both Landgraf and Brown are residents of neighboring Ventnor. Landgraf is also the Mayor of Ventnor.

Plenty of unsavory activity from Atlantic City spills over into Ventnor, Lower Chelsea and Margate too.

Lance Landgraf of CRDA and Chris Brown of NJ DCA, Department of Community Affairs, have remained generally silent on the myriad prickly issues inside Atlantic City.

For example:

Massive Atlantic City Water Failure by MUA Chairman Gary Hill who reportedly remained on vacation while AC drinking water was contaminated for over 3 days. This negatively affected residents, business and casinos.

MUA = The Atlantic City Municipal Utilities Authority which provides drinking water for Atlantic City. 

Open Container Laws Making Matters Worse.

Public drinking and smoking weed on the Boardwalk scares away families. Watch video:

Lack of Residential and Retail Development in Atlantic City.

‘It’s not easy dealing with the city’ says councilman Jesse Kurtz. Not easy getting approval to build or renovate a residential property, build a deck, upgrade your kitchen, etc.

Want to build, expand, redevelop? Residents and business owners must get OKs from both CRDA and the City of Atlantic City. If near the water, you may need DEP and CAFRA permits as well.

Watch embarrassing CRDA in action. ( Ed Gant RIP)

Landgraf and Brown also tasked with addressing the following:

• Short-handed police force.
• Crime, murder, open drug use.
• Open containers, public drinking.
• Real Estate development
• Road diet, casino & hospital gridlock
• Legal cannabis
• Short Term Rental chaos.
• Bader Field mismanagement.
• North Jersey & NYC casinos.
• Wind expansion. Industrialization of coast.
• Dangerous school district.
• MUA. Drinking water contamination crisis.
• Homeless. Social services in Tourism District

Atlantic City Tourism District is Controlled by CRDA. This State controlled entity has the authority to impose land use regulation, implement Tourism District master plan promoting cleanliness, commercial development, safety within Tourism District, redevelopment projects, and public safety infrastructure improvements.

MIGRANTS. Neighborhood concerns that some AC short-term-rentals (STR’s) could host asylum-seeking migrants as NYC turns away busloads of new arrivals. New Jersey still considers itself a so-called ‘sanctuary state’.

Atlantic City has over 1,300 short term rentals in operation. Most seem to be randomly regulated and/or managed. Some not registered with the city. Enforcement spotty at best. Landgraf admits: short-term rentals (STR’s) are often commercial operations within residential zones. Watch video below.

For years, CRDA has ‘land-banked’ large parcels of potentially premium parts of the city, stifling development and depriving Atlantic City of real estate tax revenue.

CRDA turning blind eye as Atlantic County Commissioner Ernest Coursey handles Bader Field’s all-cash parking operation, refusing to implement credit card readers, car counters, and better cash management / accountability.

Landgraf has broad influence on the region which includes consulting with Brigantine, where short-term rentals have multiplied within once quiet residential neighborhoods. Compared to other shore towns, Brigantine, Ventnor and AC have the most lenient STR restrictions. This spawns largest amount of housing and quality of life issues for full-time residents.

CRDA also controls the so-called ‘Green Zone’, cannabis-friendly areas of the city where you can grow, consume and/or sell marijuana. This Green Zone makes up a large portion of the tourism district.

Casinos and AtlantiCare taking city to court over controversial ‘road diet’. AC’s main road (Atlantic Ave) is in the Tourism District controlled by CRDA. The road diet cuts four lanes to two. Casinos and Atlanticare are opposed to the project. Will CRDA come out against the road diet? Most assume CRDA is supportive of the controversial project.

CRDA Still Blocks Live Video Feed and remote public access to their monthly meetings. Most shore towns block access to planning and zoning mtgs as well; Brigantine, Ventnor, Margate and Longport along with Atlantic City.