Brick Township’s planning board has given the go-ahead for a popular bar and restaurant in town to open an outdoor lounge.
Beacon 70 sought board approval to add a 1,400 square foot lounge underneath the existing 1,400 square foot elevated deck, which overlooks the easternmost portion of the marina behind the restaurant. The restaurant also requested permission to add 10 more parking spaces, bringing the total number of spaces to 197.
Beacon 70, located on the narrows of the Metedeconk River off the highway for which it is named, began an expansion of its outdoor dining space during the coronavirus pandemic, and sought to develop more outdoor space on a permanent basis, its representatives said.
The board memorialized the application’s approval at its March 23 meeting. Variance relief was required for parking, as the township’s zoning ordinance would normally call for 330 spaces for a business of its size, though this was largely an reaffirmation of the restaurant’s original site plan that takes into account the specific dimensions of the property.