Pelican, Philadelphia set to make “Waves” on Jersey Shore

On the inventory-starved Jersey Shore, there may yet be hope. The Philadelphia Residential Development Corporation’s Jersey Shore arm, Pelican Properties, will break ground July 1 on the Waves, a $25 million new construction development in Ventnor, N.J., the developers told The Real Deal.

This comes as the Hurricane Sandy-ravaged area has seen a drop, as high as 58 percent in some areas, in both rental and sales inventory. In fact, this could be a buyer’s last opportunity to buy a new construction home on the oceanfront in quite some time, said David Perlman, president of the PRDC.

Renderings of the interior of the Waves

“They may be able to accommodate a single home somewhere,” along the shore, Perlman said, but no other site in Atlantic County that overlooks the water can accommodate a multi-family building. In fact, this is the first such project in the county in 25 years, he said.

Homes at the four-story, row house-style development start at $749,000 for a five-bedroom — about 2,600 square feet — that does not front on the water. Oceanfront homes start at about $1.3 million, for a four-bedroom that measures approximately 2,800 square feet.

A rendering of the interior of the Waves

The 27 units will rise on the site of a dilapidated hotel called the Monaco, between Little Rock and Weymouth avenues, representatives for Pelican said. Ashley Francini, of Margate, N.J.-based Francini Real Estate, is handling sales. She is talking to buyers interested in 17 of the homes, seven of which are in contract, Perlman said.

Perlman said he thought the development would attract Pennsylvania, New Jersey and perhaps some Delaware buyers.