e e e e [Music] evenl I'm not kidding you is George all right it is 7 o'clock good evening everyone it's Bridge order Township Zing Board of adjustment
Tuesday February 25th 2025 uh adequate notice of this meeting was provided in accordance with open public meetings act and JSA 10 col 4-6 specifically on January 15th 201 25 proper notice was sent to The Courier News and the Star Ledger filed with the
clerk at the township of Bridgewater and posted on the municipal bulletin board Please be aware of the Zoning Board of adjustment policy for public hearings no new applications will be heard after 9:30 p.m. and no new testimony will be taken after 10 p.m. if you're able please rise for the salute to the
flag I of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands when under God indivisible with liy Justice all hey
bu right hi there Nancy can you give it a roll call please good evening chman F here Mr widley I here Mrs Amin here Mr Sweeney here Mr Fresco yes here Mr
bonjourno here Mr gesi uh Mr gaski just notified me he will be absent sorry Mr secat here Mr kulak here Mr vesio here Mr gabbit here Mr
Burr miss sarmad here you have a quarum you can proceed all right thank you Nancy uh going to open up the meeting to members of the public that would like to speak on any land use issue which is not on our agenda this evening
see none I'm going to close that portion we have no minutes for approval tonight we have one resolution that's 1397 Corel Drive O'Brien looking for comments and changes from the board please I have a couple short ones here on page four paragraph 11 the reference to Ms Dar
should be to Mr Mano and on page five um where it's paragraph 15 second line says finds the properties exceptionally undersized with a D and uh the R20 Zone requires a minimum
lot size of 24,000 ft for a corner lot not just an all right all right all right any other changes I move uh with the changes all right those was Mr Wy Mr bonjour know is the second chairman fuss yes Mr Wadley yes
Mrs zamin yes Mr Sweeney I don't think I'm eligible Nancy Mr Fresco yes Mr bonjourno yes all right thank you very much uh one more sorry Mr chairman
Mr ccat ccat needs to uh yes all right very good we have two Land Development applications tonight we have St Bernard's and we also have 821 and uh Rich why don't you take us through what happened with 821 the last minute cancellation so 821 notified us
that they had some witness unavailability issues um and prep issues based on some reports that they now have from us so they've uh requested that the matter be adjourned to the March 11th hearing okay how about the rest of our
roster we have so let me just make that announcement to anyone in the public here who is here for 821 Bridgewater LLC and Jewish Community Center uh application that's not being heard this evening instead that'll be heard on March 11th at 700 p.m. in this room
there'll be no further notices from the applicant okay then um with respect to other matters that the board is carrying we have okay we have uh belly Holdings will be heard on March 11th as will the
Starbucks application um on March 25th we have 1,00 Route 22 land investors also March 25th Bridgewater Self Storage also March 25th gmunk oil um
April 8th will be the continuation for Paul Miller Auto Group also on April 8th will be the continuation for visions and Pathways and on April 22nd will be a first hearing for Rockland APV Bridgewater energy all right real quick
rich is there anything we can do to an applicant that comes multiple meetings and cancel within 36 hours something like you know a penalty of you know x amount given to the shade board given to some beneficial use that you know this board is full of volunteers we made the
time to be here Nancy took the time to make packets our Township drove them around delivered them what can we do yeah there's really nothing that you can do I mean there's you know they' they've extended time in which the board can act uh in the absence of an ordinance that
would give some authority to do something like that the board on its own my opinion um you really couldn't do that would you continue to look into that I I will you find another town that has got around this ml issue because you know frankly I'm a little annoyed yeah
you know but with that said I don't want to Sure Prejudice anyone against them so thank you for that and for the record we also Mr Sweeny and I had that frustration a couple meetings ago too okay all right let's move on uh we have
the case St Bernard Bernards it's a maum case let me find the address here 821 I'm sorry uh 551 Route 28 good evening Mr chairman members of the board Michael leano Norris for the could you spell your last name for
us l i g o r a n o a n o all right and we have one board member who just wants to put on the record that they I'm a uh I've been a 30-year member member of the church um you are aware of that one senior let you know and for the record I
have no financial interest with the church and I have no trouble if you don't with hearing the case no problem with that all sir okay you're comfortable Mr widley continuing on the board can I ask him a couple questions so so 30 are me you're a member of the church I've been going there for 30
years I'm going to suggest that you reuse you want me to sorry yes I just think as a member of the applicant company you should recuse okay for that reason alone it's your call yeah sorry good seeing it so that ra question how
many people haveif we have a bunch of people here today so we have one two three four five six seven we have eight people yes so we can get you seven right was there a prior hearing on this no this is the first one right yeah so we
have seven thank very much okay ladies and gentlemen we previously provided to the board secretary proof of publication notice and I believe the board has jurisdiction to proceed to hear our application this evening yes uh let me just confirm I did review the notice it was in proper form it was uh served by
certified mail on the 200 foot list on time and published timely so the board does have jurisdiction thank you sir I may yeah if you want to swear all your Witnesses in we can keep the piece fine with me all right Kevin Walsh will you please Kevin
famous person I sit yes sir or would mind if I could sit I think my voice is a little weak tonight please get comfortable comfortable thank you would you all Raise Your Right hands please do you somly swear that the testimony you'll give to this board will be the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth so you
got and just my left to right just your names for the record please me Lord Ramirez cam i l o last name r a m i EZ I am the Cemetary director sorry can you give me your last name again r a
m i e z thank you John Barry b a r r e planner Kevin fiser f i s H eer Northeast molean Builder y William bur zoning board
engineer Katherine sad board planner thank you everyone no we'll do it when they come up yeah thanks for having us tonight board uh my name is Kev sorry myself a bus
partner hold the microphone close my name is fer I'm a 50% partner of Northeast mum that's correct yes I have a rendering and a floor plan right there yes yeah that's a rendering of the rear view of the building so
let's go with A1 on your rendering all right on architect's rendering okay and is there an A2 you have also we just mark it now A2 which is
A1 is the floor plan uh which is basically the out outside dimensions and all the interior hallways no okay so A2 is the floor plan yes sir okay so yeah would you just Mark each one a the first one the rendering
A1 and the floor plan A2 with today's date please that's the only two displays that I need to use okay were prepared under direct Superion yes they were to well the first one is a rendering
which is the architect's uh visual concept of the building the masan building itself this is very similar to what's out there there's several masan building buildings there already so the colors are going to match the existing
building and the exterior look is very much like what is existing already um these exterior views here this is all Granite veneer which is everything is a granite finish and all entrance ways are glazed storefront entranceways like you'd see in most
stores and storefronts I can go through the whole structure of the building or okay hey before you do that could I interrupt you for one moment I was under the impression that we're talking about an addition to the rear of an existing
mosum is that correct or is there more to it than that you are so the front of that building as it's shown there is going to be pretty much the same as it is today exactly thank you okay uh the interior of the building this is the floor plan of the project
can you see it from all the way over there okay um and this rear view is facing the country club that is behind the golf course or country club and this is an existing building we're connecting to behind the existing building that's within the cemetery and you'll have um
three main hallways you have uh one horizontal hallway and two vertical hallways here these section here is all the concrete structure which is all like um shelving it's concrete uh reinforced concrete shelving for full body casket
spaces within this building there is uh 1,00 casket spaces and there'll be over 800 um cremation spaces and uh aasam doesn't like uh bring in any more business it's just an option for
the consumer the community if they want to be buried in the ground or they want to be above ground and I don't know if you've ever been in St Bernard's Cemetery but there's the communities there's a lot of people inside the existing buildings and there's a lot of activity there within the people
visiting and and coming in um throughout so this is just another alternative for them speaking of any plan for any office space no there's no office space there's a very tiny electrical room there's no new electrical service within this
project we're just tapping into the off the existing building there's very minimal lighting and heating for this maselan project exter Li ligh there's no exterior lighting no the cemetery hours um in the spring and summer are 7 a.m.
to 4:00 p.m. and at winter and fall is um 7 a.m. uh to 4 to 4m I'm sorry sunlight basically sun sun up to sunight I'm sorry give me those again winter it's open uh later in the in the spring and
summer till 7 P.M sorry and till 4 pm in the fall in the winter so the cemetery's locked up at the main entrance there so there's no in andout at that time all right board questions Please Mr the men oh uh uh on the floor plan yes
okay uh you're showing three sections which one is the addition that you're adding on the left side or this where is where is the existing existing part okay so this so the whole thing is
addition this is all an addition three sections it's actually four sections of CPS four sections now um what will that four sections be used for like I
me oh yeah the same here okay so any given time how many people occup space A2 no no no people no office nothing no office nothing no it's really just for
visitation just like you would go to an exterior Cemetery to a tombstone it would be the same thing but it's without the weather so they can go inside to pay their perspec it's just for the B this this building the total square
footage of this building is just over 7,000 square feet oneir of that is the the hallway space and the 2/3 is the concrete CPS where the caskets would be what's the height of the building it's uh between 18 and 19 feet it's just over
18 ft and one question about the collar you testified it is the same collar the addition is the same exact same color as the existing structure much as you can over time right from Italy time in the next it's a little different sure right it's not that this is gray and that's
totally no it would be the same consistency of the colors that's existing yes right yes ver mon would not be tooy yeah any other board questions board professionals please just just two quick questions Mr
chairman um as far as capacity of the addition or the new space are you essentially doubling what's there now or is this laid out more efficiently than the existing building Min pH to what's existing within that Cemetery they have
they have several Maan buildings within the I'm just talking about the building that exists today that you're adding on to you know do you know what the capacity is that Wise It's probably it's probably pretty close Okay in number-wise I would think okay and the
the addition is not going to be interconnected to the main part of the building these will have new exterior entrances there won't be any interior not you cannot enter the existing andc come into the but the buildings will be connected it'll appear to be one building you would Fally you would walk
down the concrete walkways and then come in rear entrance ways yes thank you yeah thank you you're good all right thank you members of the public questions on Mr Fischer's testimony all right thank you sir all
right good evening uh St Bernard Church I am the Cemetary director as well as the maintenance uh uh facility maintenance uh the church uh seven years uh the cemetery three
years that is correct correct um right now the building the first uh building that we have the existing building we hold in about 700 CPS um it's a little bit smaller uh
capacity than this one is about 1,200 CPS spring and Summers 7 to7 uh fall in Winter 7 to4 uh no sir no we have a full-time and a part-time employee
uh no no never no not at all that is correct negative it was um the location for the space it will uh actually support for the amount of CPS that we have plus it
will be not a single addition it will be just um addition to the first building like it's separate it's not going to be a separate building it's just going to be addition right board questions please I do uh you mentioned it's going to um house 1,200 or so caskets barring a
plague essentially how long would it take to fill the building before you would need another one um under normal circumstances if we um talk about the last addition that we had it was about 800 CPS um it took
about about 14 years what else um when you have a funeral burial service that occurs I guess you have the funeral procession that arrives corre is this at all reducing parking capacity for you know a funeral not really um the service it nor
takes about 15 20 minutes um basically depends on the service it's minimum what we have on Park in would you have um would you increase the number of burials you would have at one time by adding this Crypt to your no C okay all right
thank you all right we professionals have you had any issues with I know that we mentioned there's no parking on the site no formal parking areas on the site have you ever had any issues with um you know a very popular time of the day or a very um well
attended funeral where where there was parking or overflow onto the roadway no never okay um it appears from the from the aerial photography um that there are areas on the other side of the existing buildings that's that's um open
land um I know you'd mentioned that this is essentially a building addition is there any reason or did you look into the other side or is that um appropriated for any other use yeah we're currently reserving that for Graves purposes okay so that will be the only section that we have left in the
cemetery for Graves okay so it's appropriated for for ground for ground in ground burials okay that's all I have for this witness right thank you um one question Mr Ramirez as it relates to drainage issues are you aware of any existing drainage issues related
to the existing building or the the building next that remain unresolved no that I know nothing related with this very good specifically thank you did you get an answer on that what's that did you get an answer on that I I
was told the the their engineer will address it I still think it's interesting this gentleman's been there for seven years uh no all right that was easy all right members of the public questions for Mr Ramirez all right Cen none your next
witness please yeah okay understood okay thank you yes I do I'm a licensed professional engineer yes I have actually appeared before this board on several
occasions yes I am A3 is a blot rating plan that chose the proposed addition in relation to the existing thiser the actual Mr M could you get that
microphone could you get that microphone yeah thank you better perfect yeah yes it is with today's date please yes I am yes I
have obviously the first thing they're building an addition that uh backs up to one of the existing mums on the property storm water runoff will be collected from the roof area as well as the sidewalks between the two
buildings we have proposed several dry Wells to capture the runoff and actually overflow any excess that was one of the concerns the uh gon Valley Country Club had and
they've asked us to relocate the discharge which is actually shown on the plans that you have in front of you they would like it to further nor say which is what we did noer impa
Green opposite the mle and that's already shown on this plan yes okay yes yes I am I'm actually meeting with the Avalon contractor tomorrow to get a better understanding of uh where we may be able to discharge
runoff that actually comes from the southernly side of the existing Mausoleum if you look at uh the plan you can see the Topography is such that water falling in that area just drains down on you know we're actually 75 feet away
from that location question chart on sheet four as well as sheet two I don't know any areas specifically where we could trees but on the site of
all right speaking to those seven trees that are going to be removed we don't have to plant like and kind trees but I I do think there should be planting somewhere on the 16 Acres that reflect replacement of those Seven Trees yeah yeah no problem
okay right answer to and how many years has this been in operation again okay right okay why don't we open up the board questions and then we'll get to our professionals we'll hear what they have to say on
that um you you did say that you were familiar with all the township ordinances I'm aware that there are ordinances I couldn't cite uh specific numbers I'm just was questioning whether um you could
specify um which Varian as this application was requested certainly the uh I guess the main variance would be the rear yard setback to the new Mausoleum we are
showing nearest corner of the building to be 41 and change from the property line where 150 ft is required the only one well there's yeah there's a D3 which
is two variances use variance and reass back from each upper corner rear yard would you address item five on page seven regarding relocation of the Muslim uh I think it's Mr Ramirez had
testified there really isn't any available space this area across from the maims that appears to be open is being uh saved for the in in ground
burial so I guess what I'm hearing is that you won't be coming back in a couple of years asking for additional variances for another building thank you any other questions all right board professionals
please oh no we have board professionals and members of the public nope no problem just a couple of questions for Mr Madson so Jim from a environmental constraint perspective I know we have a creek that runs along the rear of the property onto
the golf course any issues from Wetland flood Hazard area any constraints that that the Board needs to be aware of that this may impact looking at the uh NJ Geo web there are no Wetlands shown
property as you said Peters Brook trib to petersbrook through our on golf course there and that's noted as a freshwater to so it would have a minimal repair and
buffer okay so in other words no impact to any constraints correct above nearest and your testimony was that you complied with the Township's Hillside development ordinance I thought we had
yes and along those lines the 30% slopes the steeper the critical slopes there will be no disturbance in those areas correct that's correct the actual disturbance I think referring to your memo and those moderate slopes that that
range from 11 to 29 would it be fair to say that and I'm talking about the slopes immediately behind the existing building where the new addition is proposed would it be fair to say they were altered in any way during construction of the initial masoleum or
were they are they natural slopes they have open lawn withal trees scatter through okay um from a drainage perspective this project would be
classified as a minor project correct that's correct meaning you're not disturbing more than an acre of land nor increasing by more quarter acre of impervious coverage right that's so you're not subject to the major development requirements but you're
still offering to install the the church that is looks like five drywalls yes and those drywell systems will capture all of the runoff from the new building as well as sidewalk so all of the new coverage will be effectively captured
and directed to those drywalls there is some sidewalk area in the back of the building that we're not capturing but we're capturing a minor area a minor area of sidewalk but we're capturing additional existing okay sidew to
compensate and the Overflow pipes if there was to be any overflow from the drywells those overflow pipes are directed or they were relocated on your latest plans further I guess would it be to the north further to the north yes so
further away from the golf course further away from Avalon to the to the 28 side is that the idea defin and any overflow would then travel down the slopes into that tributary of the petersbrook and then make its way off
site and in your opinion it will have no impact on the adjacent properties no there shouldn't be any impact okay and you're I think your your testimon or Mr liano mentioned that you are meeting tomorrow with the folks next door to
discuss potential remedies to a pre-existing issue that is not related to this development or to this proposal that's correct yes okay very good very good um one more question on
drainage you will provide if the application's approved an O andm manual um spelling out the maintenance requirements of the drywalls dryw yes we will right okay and we heard testimony no exterior lighting is
proposed my understanding that there is no exterior lighting and there are seven I think I think your plan identified Seven Trees to be removed Seven Trees in total yes and and I understand that you will work with
um the board professionals on a plan to offer some replanting around the property yes we will okay uh last question utilities no utilities for this use is that my understanding no bathroom other than
electrical there's there's no new utilities no new utilities proposed no new no right okay very good thank you thank you would it be a me I I I I I I have a question regarding
your okay the parking spaces that you have will be enough uh for this Edition or uh how how does that work like you know I think during funerals let me back up the the drives
throughout uh the majority of the site are about 18 ft wide which allows for a vehicle to be parked and other vehicles to pass by freely out in front of the existing mums the driveways are much
wider so any people visiting loved ones M several times I've seen or two vehicles only time I was there each one is just
parking by the okay all right uh back to drainage maybe this is a good time to ask as a condition of approval you would stipulate that any changes that need to be made per Mr Burr or any engineer for the township would be made on a condition of approval
there yes I'm comfortable with that comfortable with that all right we're pretty reasonable here in bridgew we're Fair I think um we also want to protect our neighbors so it it's comforting to hear that there is a
meeting scheduled for tomorrow I hope that that is a productive meeting and some of those existing concerns can be addressed but as far as this proposal is concerned I'm satisfied with the drainers plan that they've laid out thank you very much thank you just a few questions I'll
go for um Mr mson there appears to be a a wall it says landscape wall is that a retaining wall to the east there of the of the proposed Edition the East there actually are two retaining walls and they're they're tiered retaining walls
and then is there adjacent to the sidewalk to the building what what is that it says 42 in high railing is that on top of a a wall or is that just a railing that's along the sidewalk area it's just a handrail it's all over okay thank you um in regards to the Landscaping I think I noted in my memo
that or in our joint review memo that um um there was not a landscaping plan um provided um I know this building is set further back behind the other building but um with the seven tree removal in mind um I'd be happy to work with the
applicant to figure out some places that we can put some I think the the building closer to 28 has a number of pear trees that are scattered throughout the outside area something to that effect would probably be be useful as far as the the street trees along 28 that
comment was really out of we have an opportunity to look at it it is a requirement um you know there is just a black chain link fence it was really supposed to be if it's feasible so looking at the the street width or the right of way off of the RightWay the
distance between the fence and then gravestones behind it is not large so there might not be opportunity but if there is opportunity maybe it doesn't have to be at the 50 Foot distance I do think it would beautify the uh the street view but it's again uh I understand if it's not Fe maybe this is something we could suggest
I'm very hesitant to demand on something that's been an ongoing great perfect thank you very much thank you that's all I had all right members of the public questions on Mr madson's testimony please if you want to ask questions you
can put your name and your address on the record and right now is the time for questions on the engineering testimony at the very end I'll let any member of the public speak as long as they want for or against this project okay your name uh uh Bill Hots
HZ uh rep z h o TZ and your address um 339 Douglas Road Far Hills New Jersey so I'm here on behalf of R and Valley Country Club I think visually and um
drainage wise were the most impacted by the project so our two primary concerns are drainage and visual Aesthetics the visual Aesthetics as you can imagine um you know the building's 18 feet tall but there's approximately
10 ft of retaining wall we're not doing statements I I have to swear you in if we're question for the engineer right I want to know okay um can we screen the backside of the building and and it's not the building
it's the walls so you know we're going to see 10 ft of wall approximately there'll be two 4 foot tiers approximately we can see so R Valley Country Club from the fifth hole I've been on the fifth hole yes okay so you're looking up you're looking up and you want the wall screened I think so
yeah I think that there's enough room to screen the bottom you know from the bottom of the wall so it breaks up the wall as you know you're never going to get another 30 ft but breaks up the wall visual I'm kind of something you want to answer can it
be screened disppointed I don't think that's well screening screening is not really an honorous request I have to just make my stat yeah I'm finding I'm I'm I'm a little
bit shocked by that response that they are shocked we have we are taking their drainage the drainage is coming on to our property UNC controlled it sounds like they moved it once already to they moved it North and we appreciate it they moved it away from the fifth green but
it's still coming down onto our property and we're concerned about it so um you know my question is that um is any of the is all of the existing building
being directed into the into the drywalls the roofed area from the building okay is any any additional drainage area being directed into the drywalls from the existing building yes the sidewalk areas between the two
mle that's been collected but my point is that is there any is there any additional drainage from the existing building in other words are the roof drains from the existing building being picked up now by those three drywalls or by the five drywalls the dry walls are the new
structure as well as new sidewalk and some existing are okay we're actually diverting you know some of the runoff that would occur between the two buildings capturing that so I mean they did move the the
discharge Point further north which we appreciate but we're still catching all their all their drainage whether it's a little bit to the North or not so that's that was my only issue is that I just wanted to make sure there wasn't additional drainage from the additional building from the the existing building
into the directing into the back understandable so there's not we are not diverting any other than the sidewalk area between the two M okay that's all all right and then on the screening issue it sounds like
they're going to work with our planner and try and get things to the best of their ability screened I know it's impossible to 100% screen it but I I think you're trying to protect an aesthetic that's visible from the fifth green and from the fifth nobody's going to see it except us sure you know nobody's going to see that that
retaining will all accept us the flip side to this is they also are providing inherently beneficial use to our community we want to make sure that good neighbors it goes both ways we're not asking for a lot just no I I hear you no no I feel you know that it wasn't brought up I I think it's minimal you
know through arbores a few you know trees is not unreasonable it sounds like the council you're you're okay we'll work with the township landsc great all right thank you sir you're welcome any other members of the
public all right your next witness Mr John pleas sorry did you have a question I'm a principal at the firm H gr and Associates particular Li I do I'm a licensed professional planner
and I'm a member of the American Institute of certified planners simar I have keep your distance Mike yeah um yes I have many times uh most recently I was in Summit last week um Asbury Park the
week before uh many occasions all right the board accepts him as an expert planner thank you I did it's uh two-sided what are we on A4 yes so Mr Barry just describe A4 for the record please this is a Google Earth
areial image the aerial image is from August 1st 2023 it was prepared by my office in advance of the original hearing date so back in October 7th 2024 uh I've marked it with today's date and you can see
with the red outline here the area of the property in question that we're talking about this evening with the cemetery and its surrounding environs want to Mark the other side okay A5 and this is um same dates August 1st
2023 image prepared October 7th 2024 this is a a more zoomed in look at the existing Mausoleum structures the relative rough area of um proposed development behind the existing
northernmost Mausoleum and then you can see the fifth hole of the golf course you can see some of the surrounding context that we've been discussing this evening you're familiar with the project that you're descri I am yes yes I am I have yes please your opin sure so
um we heard a little bit during um the engineering testimony about the relief that's being sought we're here this evening for a d D3 conditional use variants there are several conditional use standards for places of worship the cemetery being an accessory to the uh
the place of worship in question here the condition that we do not meet is related to the rear yard setback the ordinance requires that in a Zone in this Zone the R40 Zone where there's a 75 ft required rear yard setback that's
doubled and is required to be 150 ft as part of the conditional use requirement so we heard the testimony the proposed setback to the rear property line which is adjacent to the the golf course is 41.6 4 ft as noted on the engineering
plans and in the reports the uh and so the deviation that we're discussing this evening is that simultaneously it's also a a bulk variance for the Zone if we want to consider that separately um with the standard 75 ft setback uh 41.6 4 does
not comply so as to the um the standard of proof for D3 variants we look at the Coventry Square versus Westwood case is the landmark case dealing with that um first and foremost we have a use that's
been recognized by the courts as inherently promoting the public welfare with a place of worship and then also for a D3 variants the burden of proof is lower than If This Were A use that weren't permitted at all in the zone we're looking at what's being impacted
by the deviation from the condition can the site still um function effectively can the site still accommodate the use even though there is a departure from one of the conditions so in this context you've heard about some of the constraints on the property with limited
places available to to place the addition to the mausoleum in the overall context of the lot the efforts made to mitigate any potential impacts through landscape modifications screening drainage um minimal impact to the
overall intensity of the use on the site you know this is more more space for um future residents but um ultimately the day-to-day activity is not going to be changed you're not going to have more employees you're not going to have an increase in typical traffic volumes and
as you heard the testimony and I witnessed this evening on the way over here it's dark at night there are no lights presently at the cemetery if you drive by and there are none proposed as part of this application so the um the overall impacts we're really dealing
with um the setback to the neighbors the visual impact that we heard just uh mentioned by the neighbor and we've agreed to um some reasonable conditions to mitigate that impact which is really what the board looks for with both a conditional use variance and when
dealing with an inherently beneficial use so I think we've um kind come together this evening and and addressed the issues that have been raised and we'll do so moving forward uh to the extent that we need to consider this also under a bulk variance uh it would
be a a C2 variance in which the overall benefits of the project from a lens of zoning exceed the detriments um there are several purposes of zoning and that are Advanced most notably the the public welfare under purpose a as a inherently beneficial use
um we're promoting a desirable visual environment by matching the aesthetic of the existing building and and maintaining the the overall character of this portion of the site and we're keeping the footprint of the site tucked behind generally the uh existing
structures and leaving the vast majority of the open space open on the property well also providing additional Landscaping to enhance the site as needed with regard to the negative criteria where we talk about a substantial detriment to the public good
and substantial again being the key because any change any development will necessarily have some impact uh we can't avoid that but substantial detriment overall we're not seeing a major change here the nature of the use is not changing the overall operational
patterns of the site are not changing Storm water mitigations being provided as the engineer discussed and additional Landscaping will help soften and mitigate any of the potential visual impacts then finally with regard to the zoning ordinance and master plan um
there's no substantial impairment of either here the site is the use is conditionally permitted at this site in this Zone the use has been in this location I believe for nearly 150 years um obviously it's grown a bit over time
but this property has um not been anything else in any anyone's memory so um there's no particular master plan language that would be for or against this project and so in that case I see no impairment so in conclusion we have
uh pretty well put together application in my opinion we've discussed some of the neighbors concerns and hope that we've been able to come up with mitigating Solutions and meet our burden of proof all right board questions for Mr Barry board
professionals I have no questions um thank you for your testimony Mr Barry I think he covered all the bases as far as the the variance relief required and I do agree that if the applicant is willing to agree to the condition of the landscape as a m as to help mitigate and Screen um it will it will help mitigate
and with a D3 variant that's that's the criteria which the board has to are you satisfied this is an inherently beneficial use I know with the conditions that changed per Town ordinance in 2010 this was previously inherently beneficial but after that change maybe you could explain to the board just very
briefly what happened in 2010 2011 that made this kind of fall under the the D3 characteristic sure um and this is something that came up when the application initially came in for intake um we had to do a little bit of the history research to figure out because they had come in before um why it why it
was rising to the level of a d variance and it really has to do with the ordinance change from 2011 which changed the conditions under the conditional use one of those conditions being the setback um and the doubling of the setback in residential zones which if you don't meet a condition of the conditional use you're a D3 had that
change not happen would they be here in front of this board they would not okay thank Youk you Mr bur no questions Mr thank you members of the public questions on the planning testimony
you've heard all right seeing none okay all right thank you very much uh Rich why you take us through the conditions sure we open up deliberations should there be a motion
to uh approve conditions that we discussed would be that the applicant would provide a landscape plan and plant replacement trees per the ordinance to the satisfaction of the township planner and Township engineer um would comply with the township engineer's
requirements to control drainage provide a buffer um along the wall of the addition which faces the ran Valley Country Club also to the satisfaction of the township planner and that's all all right thank you uh members of the public that would like to speak for or against the case
now is your time to approach make your comments heard you're good all right thank you all right we're going to open up Del liberations why don't we send it down to Mr gav good evening sir good evening your thoughts um yeah to your point there's been there's an
inherent beneficial use here to be at risk of sounding crft people have to go somewhere um that seems pretty minimal as far as variances I'd be in favor of it would you vote in favor yes I would be in favor of it Mr Kola
I would agree as well I think we have a a project which in which a need has been demonstrated and this will fulfill we've had an existing use which this is consistent with and the applicant is willing to work with its neighbors in a productive way to provide the visual
screening that's necessary so I would support this project as well I'll I'll agree with the same um you know if the drainage and you know visual impacts are addressed I have no concern so I would support it I would support it um nice presentation
brief concise I'm in favor of it thank you Mrs Ain your thoughts please uh I'm in FA favor of approving all right thank you Mr Sweeny I uh I have nothing really to add I agree with everything that's been said
and critically I think that um the site will remain appropriate for its existing use once these changes are made given the landscape buffering and the storm water mitigation thank you Mr Fresco yeah you know I concur with the board I
mean it's comes down to three things right the drainage the I'd like to see the trees you know you and I feel strongly about trees in our in our town so I think that's important and accommodating his neighbors I think it's great so I wish you good luck I support it thank you Mr vesio um for the
application I see no meaningful detriment detrimental impacts of community um overall beneficial use shouldn't make traffic any worse I'm for it thank you right thank you I to I'm in favor the fifth hole happens to be my favorite um you know when it comes down
to you know screening I hope you can do everything you can to to make sure the ren Valley and the neighbors are protected and I appreciate everything all the meetings you've already had with them all right great I'm going to vote in favor uh and with that rich if you have nothing else I'm going to seek a motion to approve from the board please
I'll make a motion thank you Mrs amen do I have a second please second all right Mr Sweeney was the second we get a roll call vote please chairman fo yes Mr widley I'm sorry Mrs Zine yes Mr Sweeney yes Mr
Fresco yes Mr bonjourno yes Mr ccat yes and Mr kulak yes right you ladies gentlemen well done 60 Minutes great job and thank you members of the public for coming out all right we're going to
go to our next meeting Nancy help me out here our next meeting our next meeting is March 11th that's it and as Mr Aller reviewed
earlier we have um the Starbucks continuation scheduled expecting them to proceed and we have um as was announced earlier the um 821
Bridgewater LLC application and that is it for 311 all right so our next meeting March 11th in this room 7 PM we have Starbucks and the continuation of 821 with that Mr
chairman yes before you kick us out of here uh I have a question probably for Council and it's about the letter we got from the police department with respect to to the 821 uh project are there any limitations
on what can be taken from that letter and referred to during the public hearing I know because like gu the guy that wrote it's not going to be around I'm assuming for cross examination the board could ask him to be here to testify as to his report the applicant
could could do the same applicant could uh subpoena him to come in and and question him about the report but the report's in the record suppose he's not here and we refer to his letter can we
for example read sections of his letter you can for the purpose of getting some reply from the applicant but if you think there's something in that letter that you want some further information from we should we should have the officer here to testify to it is that
something you'd like to see I I'm perfectly content with being able to refer to the letter and reading parts of the letter to the public since our Land Rover case the chief has as he's been asked by the administration to review every land use case planning board and
zon board which I think is a good thing and that led to that letter so if the applicant wants to cross-examine that that officer by all means I think that's their right and if he says we can go look at the letter I'm I thought it was a good letter yeah thought it was a great letter but
um yeah that's wonderful in fact one of the things that struck me about the letter was that we got it I mean in the I don't know 15 years I've been on this board I don't think I ever saw yeah communication from the police department about any application we've considered
so that was wonderful perfect thank you thank you with that a motion to adjourn please oh no I I have a question Mrs am you know on on the list we have three applications on one evening it be enough time to hear yeah
where there expecting that belly Holdings may not go forward so if belly Holdings does not go forward um 821 Bridgewater is the backup plan Mrs am we're forced to to schedule so many
people on one night because the lawyers like to cancel at the last minute and I hate having these meetings scheduled and having your time ear marked and then have someone cancel and then we cancel the meeting we have so many cases so we're going to like they like hotels they double book we're double booking applications
Mr chairman yes you I can um answer M mean's question the belly Holdings again that one is tentatively scheduled to adjourn but I I have a tenative date as well that'll go to May it's been an informal request up to today but I did
communicate with the attorney again and expecting formal request to come which is why I didn't announce it okay thank you all right we had a request to adour from Mr bonjourno second second going once Mr Sweeny thank you good night
everyone that a lot of friends they bug me every year join I yeah