Asbury Park On The Record: The Basics.

Not every historic building on the waterfront carries the same legal protection, and this is one of the most important things for a newcomer to understand.

In 2004, Convention Hall and the Paramount Theatre were placed under a preservation easement. An easement is a legal restriction attached to a property itself. It stays with the property permanently, no matter who owns it, and it binds every future owner. This easement requires that any repair or renovation meet a national preservation standard known as the Secretary of the Interior's Standards, and that the buildings be open to the public at least twelve days a year, for at least six hours each of those days. The state's historic preservation office and the City of Asbury Park can both enforce it. Convention Hall has also been listed on the state and national historic registers since 1979.

The Casino complex and the Steam Plant have never been listed on either register. In 1990, the state's historic preservation office determined that both buildings are eligible for listing. Eligibility is not the same as listing, and neither one, on its own, stops an owner from altering or demolishing a building. The Casino's real protection comes from its state coastal permit, which requires construction on the arcade and carousel to be reviewed by the state historic preservation office to the same standard Convention Hall follows. The Casino Arcade also has its own public access easement, granted in 2010, guaranteeing a public walkway through it, separate from any historic protection.