The Ocean City Planning Board on Wednesday unanimously approved a plan to expand the Island Beach Gear retail store at the foot of the Ninth Street Bridge.
The board voted 7-0 to approve a site plan that adds a second and third floor above parts of the existing building.
“Currently, it’s Eckerd,” architect Daniel Wheaton said of the look of the former pharmacy building that greets visitors as they come off the bridge and onto the island.
He showed plans for a redesigned structure more appropriate to a shore town and including 10,359 square feet of retail space and 8,461 square feet of space for storing inventory. The current building is 10,489 square feet.
The store sells chairs and other beach, pool and patio gear and is ready to expand after opening a little less than a decade ago.
The board also approved three variances.
Though the new plan proposes 24 parking spots (eight more than exist now), 37 are required by zoning. A truck berth is required, but the plan proposes none. A maximum of three signs are permitted, and the plan includes four (a variance to display a temporary 4-by-8-foot banner also was approved).
Wheaton said one of the main objectives of the expansion is to reduce truck traffic. The store currently uses off-site storage, requiring truck deliveries sometimes two to three times a week. With more space to store inventory, Island Beach Gear can be fully stocked for the summer with a few preseason deliveries, he said. The ferrying would be eliminated.
He said a truck berth is not necessary because the inventory is not heavy and does not require forklifts or other equipment to unload.
Four neighbors spoke during public comment.
“I appreciate what you’re doing with the building,” Bay Avenue resident Michele Angeli told the Gill family, owners of Island Beach Gear.
But she said, despite the assurances, she still worries about increased truck traffic. She said idling trucks block her driveway and become a nuisance to both pedestrians and property owners.
Representatives of the Gills said the typical pattern for trucks is to pass Island Beach Gear on Ninth Street, take a right turn on Bay Avenue, a right turn on 10th Street, another right turn on Pleasure Avenue and approach the store from behind the neighboring MAB Paint store.
Bay Avenue resident Diana Exzabe said the new construction would block her view of the bridge.
“I think we’ve earned that view (after putting up with five years of its construction),” Exzabe said.
Board members said the benefits of the application outweighed the detriments and included increased parking, less impervious lot coverage, increased fire and flood safety measures, water runoff redirected away from neighbors and better traffic flow.
Board members Dean Adams, Gary Jessel and Antwan McClellan were not present.
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In a separate vote, the Planning Board heard its first request as the Flood Damage Prevention Appeal Board.
The owners of Stainton’s are getting ready to add 22 residential units on the third and fourth floors of the former department store. To obtain building permits, they must comply with new flood elevation requirements.
Lifting and elevating the massive four-story building is not feasible, they said. And “dry-proofing” (making it watertight) would require removing 21,000 square feet of ground-floor slab and anchoring it with pilings to keep the building from floating away.
The board voted to allow Stainton’s to “wet-proof” — use waterproof materials on the first floor, elevate electrical sockets and install flood vents to allow water to travel in and out of the building. The store had done that during a pre-Superstorm Sandy renovation, and would continue for a new first-floor vestibule.
Community Operations Director and engineer Roger McLarnon agreed that the appeal should be granted, but he urged the board to “use this type of variance sparingly.”
