By John Pacenti
The Manalapan Town Commission voted to proceed with the foreclosure of an office building at State Road A1A and East Ocean Avenue. The office at 131 S. Ocean Blvd. sits at the northeast corner of the Plaza del Mar property.
A lien of $163,000 had been placed on the building because of unpaid code enforcement fines for unapproved renovations, said Town Attorney Keith Davis, who added he thought the building at one time housed a bank.
The town went in front of the special magistrate for code violations on Jan. 30 to obtain foreclosure authorization. Davis said the owners of the office building appear ready to push back against the town.
“Foreclosure authorization hearing really is a ministerial act. It ended up being a two-hour hearing, so I fully expect a fight, but that’s fine,” Davis said.
According to Palm Beach County property records, the office building is owned by Babylon, New York-based Salute Realty, which purchased the building for $1.2 million in 2019.
Attorney Michael Weiner, representing Salute, argued during the January magistrate hearing that Manalapan failed to send notices of the fines by certified mail as directed by law — a contention the town denies. He said the allegations of the violation are “factually incorrect” and that “there was confusion.”
Ultimately, the commission voted to authorize the next step in the foreclosure process, which includes sending a letter to the property owner to see if it will pay the lien.
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