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Ready jump. >> Good evening everyone. Welcome to the zoning board of adjustment meeting for December the 10th, 2025. Will everyone please stand for a salute to the flag?
>> I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, liberty and justice for all. Notice of the meeting has been satisfied
in accordance with chapter 231 PL1975 by advertising in the home news Tribune notifying the Sentinel Publishing Company and the Star Ledger and also posting on the bulletin board and filing with the Burough Clerk. Roll call.
>> Mr. Green >> here. >> Mr. Kazinski >> here. >> Mr. Espazito >> here. Mrs. Godstein >> here. >> Mr. Castle Grant >> here. >> Miss Cassandi >> here. >> Mr. Cooper >> here. >> Under old business, uh, we don't have
any, uh, continuing or carrying over applications. Uh, our first application that I want to bring up tonight is 2522 Daniel and Annette Hawken Josh of 54
Forest Avenue. that uh application is being carried uh without further notice to the meeting of January 28, 2026 at 7:30 p.m. So, if anyone's here for that, uh will be heard on January 28th.
The next application that we're going to hear tonight is 2523 Salvatore Rento of 26 Adam Boulevard. Please raise your right hand. You swear to tell the truth, the whole truth. Nothing but the peace will help you God.
I do. Are you sworn? >> Mr. Reno, would you tell us why you're here tonight? >> Uh, was it a process of building my garage? One second. >> I don't think it's on >> this one. >> Continue. I was in the process of
building my uh garage that has previously was approved and uh it came to an abrupt stop. >> Can you tell the board why it came to a stop? I was told that the height of the building exceeded the uh permissible
limits and apparently I negated to take into account the uh measurement of the floor of the foundation of the building which put me over the height which now stands at 16 1/2 ft.
So you're here tonight to get a variance on the 16 and 12 ft means that the ordinance is 15. So you're looking for the the other foot and a half. Correct. >> That's correct. >> Just so you know, the um zoning officer
um uh statement says 17 ft. So are you sure that it's only going to be 16 and a half? >> It's a little over. I think it's 16.8 to be technical. >> Okay. 17. We approved the 24
foot and the 24 foot. That is correct. Correct. >> Yes. >> So, you're only looking for two feet, so to speak. >> Correct. >> I'm going to open this to the public. Is there anyone from the public wishing to
speak in reference this application? Hearing no one from the public, I'm going to close the public portion. Pleasure of the board concerning this application. Move the application be approved.
I have a motion and a second to approve this application. Roll call. >> Mr. Green. >> Yes. >> Mr. Kazinski? >> Yes. >> Mr. Espazito? >> Yes. >> Mrs. Godstein? >> Yes. >> Mr. Castle Grant? >> Yes. >> Miss Cassandi?
>> No. >> Mr. Cooper? >> Yes. >> Okay. Your application's approved. >> 17 ft. >> Thank you very much. Have a good night. >> Our next application is 2514 Epic
Church, 2707 Main Street Extension. >> Good evening. My name is Jason Church. I'm from the law firm of Wen Goldman and Spitzer. I'm here on behalf of the applicant, which is Solar Landscape LLC. Uh the applicant
is seeking amended preliminary and final major site plan approval to construct solar carport canopies in the parking lot of the House of Worship located at 2707 Main Street Extension, identified as block 257, lot 3.06 on the Burough's
tax maps. The property is approximately 13.99 acres and is located in the waterfront redevelopment area. However, because the zoning for the property was changed when it was placed was not changed when it was placed in the redevelopment area, the former SED2
zoning regulations originally put in place prior to 1999 remain applicable. The details of the zoning history of the property are set forth in paragraph 6 of the board's 2021 resolution on this matter. Back in 2021, the zoning board
adopted resolution ZB21-05, granting a use variance to permit construction of the solar carport canopies and a C variance to permit a rear yard setback of 1.3 ft from the southern property line where 25 ft is required. This approval allowed for the
construction of seven solar carport canopies over the existing parking lot. Now 4 years later, we're here because applicant is proposing to reconfigure the seven canopies but reduce their aggregate size by approximately 21 to 22,000 square ft. This new proposal
removes the need for the previously approved C variance as the rear yard setback will comply with the minimum standard set forth in the former SED2 zone. However, the board's planner has identified a front yard setback variance that should have been addressed in 2021 and has asked that we address it now. We
also note that though the board's planner indicates a devariance is required, the applicant's position remains that because variances run with the land, the use is now permitted as a result of the devariance granted four years ago. Uh and because the proposal reduces as opposed to increases the
total square footage of the carport canopies, the new proposal is less intense than the prior proposal and no new devariance is required. Nevertheless, we will put in the proofs for uh Dvarian just as a sort of alternative here. The proposed solar
panels will be installed in connection with the community solar energy program. The state first launched the program as a pilot program in 2018 and in 2023, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities voted to officially establish a permanent program. Individuals and
businesses are now able to benefit greatly from solar energy systems without needing to install solar panels on their own property. Instead, solar energy is created generated offsite for use by members of the program. Members receive several benefits, including paying a reduced energy bill by
utilizing clean and renewable energy resources. Significantly, these community solar projects are required to serve a majority of low and moderate income customers. The applicant has been actively involved in the SOL community solar program for several years and continues to install solar energy systems in municipalities across the
state. The record will show that the application conforms to the bureau's site plan requirements and that the positive and negative criteria for all the variances will be met. In support of the application, we will rely on the testimony of the following witnesses. Jim While, the applicant's
representative, Kevin Shelley, the applicant's professional engineer, and Andrew Janu, the our professional planner. And just for the record, we're in receipt of the board planner review letter dated December 4th, 2025, and the board engineers review letter dated
December 10th, 2025. So, with that, we'll call our first witness, which is our applicant's representative. I do. >> All right. Uh, Mr. uh, can you just spell your last name for the record, Mr. Wheel? >> Sure. Uh, it's J James and it's spelled
W I L. >> Give you this. >> Yeah. All right. Can you just tell us your role within Solar Landscape? >> Uh, trip. I'm the senior manager with uh Oh, sorry. Senior manager in the pre-construction department at Solar
Landscape. >> And what type of company are you? >> Uh we are a community solar provider. Uh we've been in business since 2012. Uh we are at the forefront of the community solar program uh ever since it started in 2019.
>> And about how many employees? >> Uh 350 roughly. And so what are the benefits of community solar? And >> you touched on it before, but the big part is discounted power uh green clean energy.
>> And uh do you know what the discount is for this particular project? >> Sure. Uh 20%. >> What kind of community engagement do you do? Uh we like to do local events, coordinate with local governments, um
you know, more grassroots approach and traditional media. >> And so going back to the 2021 approval, just to refresh briefly refresh the recollection of the board, do you recall how many panels, solar panels were approved at the time?
>> Uh at the time it was 6,171. And then we also were granted a use variance as well as a set a C variance for the setback. Is that right? >> Correct. >> And so why are we making revisions and coming back to the board today?
>> Uh yeah, in the meantime panel technologies increased significantly. Panels are more efficient. Um we just need less of them. Uh the reconfiguring of the arrays largely due to steel tariffs, a little value engineering, and uh using less steel. And has the BPU changed the way
they award these projects or require these applications to move forward? >> Yes, previously we were required to have all non-ministerial permits, zoning, planning prior to submission into the program for award. Um the program the project was never awarded back in 2021
when we secured our approval here. Uh the projects has since been awarded. Um program doesn't require non-ministeral permits prior to submission anymore. So here we are. And um so this new proposal, how many
panels are we talking about now? We we said we were about 6,000 under the previous approval. >> Correct. Uh it is 4,257. >> So just why are we reducing the number? >> Uh to generate the same amount of power, we just don't need that many modules
anymore. >> And um how many kilowatt hours of electricity are we generating? >> Roughly 3 million. Which and how many homes will that add power? >> About 350 >> on an annual basis.
>> And then uh you have your approval from the FAA. >> Correct. >> And just so that the board understands the when you are coming down the bridge from the parkway, which way are the panels facing in relation to the parkway? >> Uh they're facing west and southwest.
>> So away away from the parkway. So you won't see any glare coming down that bridge? >> No. >> Okay. And then so our proposal proposes phasing. Can you just kind of walk us through how the phasing will work? >> Uh yeah. So each phase probably lasts
three to four weeks. Um we'll work closely with the c the church to, you know, disturb them as little as possible. I know their congregation is very large. Um so we're not going to take up their entire parking lot at the same time. And as far as maintenance goes, do you have people on site
regularly for maintenance? >> Uh, yeah, there's a bannual inspection, nothing too crazy. Two guys, one truck, maybe a scissor lift. >> And what is the expected lifespan of these panels? >> Uh, 20 to 30 years. >> And then you have a decommissioning plan
as well. How does that work briefly? >> Sure, we do. Uh, we would remove all the modules, the structure, all the electrical equipment, and restore the property to its current condition. And then so here with this particular site, I know you have sites all over the state. How do you have a lease with the property owner or what kind of agreement
do you have with the property owner? >> Yeah, we have a we have a ground lease with the the church. >> And if there if we're approved tonight, when do you anticipate construction beginning? >> Uh fabrication would start relatively quickly and we'd be looking to mobilize
midspring. And I guess since you're saying about 3 to four weeks for each phase and we've proposed four phases, we're talking maybe 3 months to construct the project. >> Three to four and then probably an additional two to three for commissioning, testing.
>> Okay, that's all the questions I have for this witness. >> The board have any questions? >> I do. >> of the witness proceed. Um, can you tell me what situations will break the panels?
>> Um, outside of I mean vandalism, not much. I mean, potentially hail if we were ever to experience hail that was that large. >> Yes. I actually saw a documentary on solar panels
>> and they showed when the hail hit it, there's a lot of chemicals inside of the solar panels and then they leeched all into the soil and if there's groundwater there, it contaminates the groundwater.
>> I'm not sure the the documentary, but um the way our operations and maintenance works, we monitor the system 24/7. So if there is any damage to the modules, we are notified immediately. >> Okay. But even so, once it leeches out into the ground, then what?
>> Currently situated on an imperous surface. I mean, we wouldn't let it sit for I mean, we'd replace the modules immediately. They wouldn't have time to leech. >> Of course, it would. Once it breaks, it goes right into the soil. >> There aren't liquid chemicals inside the modules. It's metal.
>> What kind of chemicals then? silicon. Uh, don't know off the top of my head. >> Doesn't that contaminate the groundwater? >> I mean, I I can't really speak to that.
>> You work for the company, don't you? >> Yes. >> I'm not I'm not an environmental professional. I can't >> Yeah, we're not he's not a here as an expert witness, so I don't know that that I mean, we don't have somebody who's here to talk about the chemical. We don't have like a
someone with a chem chemist background training in chemistry to be able to talk about that specifically. >> Have the right to build 6,17 you speak up. >> You would have the right to build 6,171 panels right now anyway. >> Yes, that's correct. We already have the
site plan approval from the brief from four years ago. So, we are uh we can build those. We prefer this configuration which is why we're here tonight. >> It's solar panels one way or another. Exactly. Yes. >> Has anything like that ever happened to
your knowledge in the past? >> Not that I'm aware of. >> The the question was whether he's the the panels they've built built in other locations has has occurred if this uh breaking situation has occurred in at other locations. >> I mean, not to my knowledge.
>> And they last 20 to 30 years. That's a long time. >> Yes. There's actually a performance warranty on the module for 30 years. >> Well, basically you're reducing these these panels about 1,800, correct? >> Yeah, roughly.
>> I'd like to ask about the the 20 to 30 years. So, does the church is the church leasing these or are you leasing the the church? >> We're leasing the ground from the church. They receive a compensation through the lease. >> Okay. So, it's a 20-year lease or with I
believe it's 20 years. >> Sorry, they vary from project to project. Uh, yes, this is 20-year lease with two optional 10-year extensions. >> And you said that once if if the solar panels are not going to be
used anymore for whatever reason, you're going to re return everything to the way it is. Is there a bond or something that's going to ensure that? Uh, not currently, but we're contractually obligated to do it. >> Okay. As long as your company's in business, and I don't want you to go out
of business, but >> things happen. Things >> in those instances, a lot of times our asset, you know, or as in the industry, assets are sold off to other bodies of, you know, business. >> Are they upgradable? The panels? >> Uh, I mean, technically, I guess you
could replace them, but not in any real appreciable sense. So >> this is the upgrade from the other previous modules that we had. >> Is your company responsible for the panels that's presently on site?
>> Uh I don't believe there are any. >> I don't think there's any. >> Well, you have 6,71 panels there now, correct? >> Just >> No, it I'm sorry. It wasn't built. It was never built >> that. So there are no panels yet. We were approved for that number of panels,
but we none. No, there's not been any construction. >> Okay. I see. >> Yeah. >> Okay. >> The 300 homes that it would power, will that stay consistent over the 30 years or will there be degradation to the system in terms of how much power it could output those 30 years?
>> There is degradation. Um, it's roughly a half a percent per year. >> Any other questions? any um EV station provider. >> Uh no, no. So it's it's community solar, so it's not going to power the the
building directly. Yeah. >> I guess you would be best person to ask about removing ice and snow from the panels that accumulates. Something you just let me go off or do you go in and physically remove it? >> Uh we typically let it melt. Uh once the sun hits the modules, they warm up quite
a bit and they melt the snow off. >> Any issues with the grounds? >> Uh we haven't really encountered any. Um we can install rain guards on it or ice breakers. >> The church called and asked you to
>> come in and take care of it. >> Of course. Yeah, we have we own and operate all these systems. We have our own maintenance and you know squads. >> Thank you. How close to the roadway are they? >> I think that might actually be a better question for our engineer. Yeah.
>> Where where is your company located at? >> Uh we're headquartered in Asbury Park. >> Any other questions? Want to call the next witness? >> Sure. Our next witness is our engineer, Mr. Kevin Shel. Tell the truth, the whole truth, not the
peace of God. >> Yes. >> Do you want me to do the vier? >> All right. Okay. Uh, so if you could just give us the benefit of your education and professional experience, please >> and get the name. >> Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, your name for the
record. >> Kevin Shelley, last name S H E L L Y. I'm the owner of Shoreoint Engineering. Um, I am a licensed professional engineer in New Jersey since 2012. My license is current and in good standing. I've testified in front of various
boards across the state, uh, including previously in front of this board during the 2021 approval. >> We accept your credentials. Proceed. Thank you. Um, so if you could put that up >> two minutes share that I previously
provided to the board. They weren't. No, >> I can email them to you tomorrow if that >> I just want to know for purposes. >> Sure, fair enough. >> So, uh, exhibit A1 is just a colored site rendering of the property. Um, and
again, I think, uh, it illustrates that the, uh, proposed solar car ports are shown here in blue. They're over top of the existing parking area across the site. Uh the existing building is shown in the middle of the site in red with the main street uh extension on the
right hand side. Uh the one question that was asked about how far the panels are from the streets. I think this uh rendering illustrates uh the separation they are uh from both Chevier and uh the additional future road uh down on the bottom on the south. uh as well as
there's a 10-ft setback uh to the main street extension which was the additional bulk variance that was uh mentioned at the opening testimony. Uh so there's a 10-ft setback from the panels to the front property line uh along the main street extension.
Um again it's been discussed the prior approval was for 6,171 panels and now we are proposing 4,257. Uh this reduced the overall square footage of the carport areas um down to
130,890 which covers approximately 497 parking spaces. Uh again, some existing parking lot changes have occurred at the property over the past few years. Uh some parking lots were rearranged, additional parking was added. Uh some
drives were were reconfigured. Uh and that gave us the opportunity to reconfigure the carports accordingly and change some of the uh layouts to be more efficient as well as upgrading the panels. Uh the additional exhibit I have
is exhibit A2. which is really just a comparison of the prior approval was located side here versus current. Uh the top view uh top left and top right would be the project's proposal along the main street
frontage. Uh you can see the prior approval had a little bit of an L-shaped in the corner. Do you like me to turn it so you can see? any >> it's also located in the site plans that's submitted but this is an exhibit that shows again the configuration is
largely similar the configuration uh in the area adjacent to Chevier again largely similar where the carports are covering the existing parking spaces uh along Chevier we've actually pulled the setback uh from Chevier back a little
bit from what was originally approved uh but and the the project in terms of what was approved originally back in 2021, the carport configurations for what see along the adjacent driveways um is very consistent and very similar, but again, we've reduced the overall size of the
carports. We've reduced the number of panels um as well. >> And if you could just talk about the C variance that was granted in the previous application and what we've done in that area of the the sure proposal. I'm going to switch back to exhibit
A1. Uh the C variance that was granted previously was for a rear yard setback uh along the uh proposed boulevard extension on the bottom of the plan here. Previously, the the car ports were covering this bottom row of parking spaces and extending beyond the parking
spaces. Uh we were approved at a 1.3 foot setback to the rear property line. As you can see in the updated exhibit, those carports have been pulled back from that property line. Uh so those the last row of parking is not covered any longer. Uh and that variance has now
been um eliminated. >> And and we the board's planner pointed out that the prior approval did have in another location uh panels closer to the property line than would have been permitted by the zoning and that wasn't picked up. the application was approved
and now we're also proposing the a variance in that location as well. Can you talk about that? >> Correct. Yeah, again the variance would be along the main street extension for the 10-ft setback. It's consistent the same location as what was previously proposed and approved, but a variance was not previously identified or
requested or granted. Uh but again, the proposal is consistent with what was previously proposed and approved. Um, can you talk about the height of the canopies, please? >> Sure. Uh, the canopies are tilted. The
minimum clearance underneath the canopy is 14 ft. I believe the maximum goes the maximum height on the high end goes up to 22 feet and 8 in. Uh, 14 ft minimum clearance underneath there is the minimum required by the international
fire code. It's consistent with the prior approvals and what was previously uh proposed and approved uh which was reviewed by the fire official uh back in 2021 as well. So again, it's consistent with the with the prior approval. >> Uh and uh just because I know that's
always a concern or circulation in emergency vehicles, is there going to be any issue with that as a result of the canopies? >> No. Uh again in the back of the site plans the last sheet we do show a couple exhibits that we prepared previously which show uh the vertical clearances. The fire trucks can have the appropriate
vertical clearances to drive under the carports and the panels. Uh there's a large enough span in between the drive aisles here on the south side. Uh where there is a gap while they do overextend the parking spaces there is a clear span
in between the drive aisles. Again this was all reviewed and approved by the fire official previously. Um, and none of that has changed as part of this application. >> And, uh, there were some comments in one of the review letters about site lighting. If you could just address site lighting, please. >> Sure. So, the site as it stands now has
a lot of light poles that provide sight lighting for all the parking areas. We're eliminating a lot of those light poles due to the carports that are being proposed over top of these parking spaces. We have proposed uh LED light fixtures that will be mounted underneath the carports to provide a lighting that
is consistent with what is there now. Uh so that there are no changes to the to the overall lighting scheme as a part of this application. >> And are is there going to be any kind of uh meaningful impact on the collection of storm water that already exists on the site? >> No, there's no impact on the existing
storm water management system for the parking lot. Um as Mr. uh well indicated the uh carports have a little uh gutter system that's attached to them. The runoff comes down the the carports. It's collected. It's piped down uh the steel
columns that support it and down into the ground to be connected into the underground drainage system. So we don't have water cascading over the top of the panels every time it rains or snow melts. The water's collected uh and brought down and put into the ground >> into the collection system. It's not put
into the ground. It's put into the existing drainage system that's throughout the parking lot. >> And is there going to be any impact on the overall re uh Riverton project? >> No. >> Um any environmental impacts or negative environmental impacts?
>> No. >> Um >> the only other thing I haven't mentioned is that there is a a grounded equipment area uh located in the front corner of the building. Same location that it was previously proposed. Uh there is fencing that is surrounding it and we've added
landscaping as well around the uh equipment area so that it's it's enclosed, it's screened, it's protected and is landscaped uh nicely so it's out of view. >> And I have no further questions for Mr. Shelley.
>> Uh Mr. Cornell, uh Mr. Fowler, do you gentlemen have anything you want to add to this? No, >> Mr. Chairman, the applicants engineer has addressed the comments in my report. mine also but anything else that's mentioned in there you also going to satisfy in my report in the comments section
>> correct >> anyone else have any questions yeah just on the ground equipment is there any high voltage because these are there's a lot of panels here uh >> so the ground equipment involves uh transformer inverters uh disconnects uh standard equipment as part of this um
again I think you if you hard to see from an overall standpoint when you look at 14 acres from the aerial, but when you zoom in on that area and the site plans, you see that there's a um sufficient amount of equipment to handle the 4,000 panels that are in there. Um in terms >> more concerned with safety of someone
getting in if there's high voltage >> again that that's why it's enclosed all the panels again or all the equipment um follows the appropriate safety standards. The whole area is enclosed and screened so that it is protected so nobody does get in there. Um, but no,
there's nothing that would be, you know, think of a typical transformer. If you were go to up to a transformer that's on the side of the the road, there's levels of safety that it encloses all that stuff within certain cabinets inside of there. It's very similar to out here that everything is enclosed inside of cabinets so that it's, you know, nobody
tampers with it and, you know, gets hurt. >> Just it's more logistics question just for my curiosity. So, how are you transporting the energy from there to wherever? It's not all going to the church. Correct. >> No, it's not going to the church. It's
being put back into the the power system uh through the electric company. >> Oh, so it's and they do what what they want. It's not going to individual houses or location. >> Yes. The power is generated here, put back into the electric company to then distribute as part of the community. >> You sell it to them and so on and so forth.
>> You sign up for the community solar program. You go online, you type in your address, you answer a couple questions. Anybody within the town of Sarville or adjacent communities can sign up for the program. I'm a member of community solar myself. I do a lot of projects with them. It's great. It's an automatic
reduction on your electric bill. Uh besides the fact that community solar does account for 51% that does get set aside for oop for low moderate income housing. Um every member of the of the town is eligible to apply for it. So it's again it's taken back it's sent back to the system uh for the electric
company to to distribute. >> Okay. Thank you. You're welcome. Have you seen other communities that have this many panels? >> Uh yes, I've seen uh a lot of communities with with this amount of panels. Uh we don't a lot of them go on
warehouses. When you talk about size of a project like this, um we do a lot of projects on warehouses, uh self- storage facilities. Um we've done uh multiple projects that have several thousand panels on them. Um >> any problems have occurred? No.
>> Okay. And that side setback is 10 feet only. >> Uh the setback to Main Street is 10 feet for the panels or for the >> And what's required? >> 60 I believe. >> Right. Because it's a it's technically a front yard, I think. Yeah. So I think 60
is correct. >> 60 is required, but you're doing 10, >> correct? 10, which is again, yes. It's consistent with the prior approval, but yes, it was not identified that that was a >> But isn't that very close to the road? >> Okay. So, the you'll see on the aerial
we have a whole row of landscaping that's in between the actual road. Uh this is 10 foot to our property line and then the actual travel way of Main Street extends out further beyond that travel much. I mean, you do have a curb that jets in
towards our property as it uh gets near the entrance just as an acceleration and deceleration lane, but I mean, it looks like it's at least S. >> Okay. So, now in the winter time there's a snowstorm, you have those gigantic plows coming through.
>> Isn't that kind of dangerous? Now, the plows would be 17 18 feet away if they're up against the curb line from these carports that are 20 feet over top of them. >> They're on the parkway all the time. The trucks, >> the trucks aren't 20 feet tall. The fire
trucks have enough vertical clearance to drive under these carports. So, >> I'm not thinking that way. I'm just thinking the panels themselves. panels are all at least for the bottom of the carport is 14 feet off of the ground on our site. It would be even
higher off of the road and from from Main Street and they're all tilted the other way. So, we're our our car ports are going to be 20 ft high off of the travel surface and a plow truck is not 20 ft tall as it's going. There's there's no concern that we would have
with the proximity and the location of these panels in relation to the travel way along Main Street that they would be hit by anything. That would be in not in our best interest to put something in a in a location that could be >> I'd imagine I'd imagine you have the same concern with light poles and
traffic signals and things like that as well. >> Exactly. So the if you look at it like a traffic signal a snowplow can drive perfectly underneath the traffic light. That's something similar to what we we'd be looking at here. >> Just want to confirm the project won't
alter the available amount of parking spaces on the site. No, we don't lose any parking spaces as as part of the application. All the columns are done where four parking spaces meet. They're done in the corner so that cars pull in. Typical if you pull into a shopping center or what's there right now, you've got light poles that are in those same
locations. They're in the middle of four spaces so that it does not impact a single car's ability. And we would be doing something similar with the uh with the steel columns. the uh the solar panels, the company that puts them in pays x amount of
dollars to the church. Correct. >> Yes. That's part of their lease. They're leasing the parking lot in order to construct these carports. Uh and they pay a fee to the to the church as part of their agreement. and and then the solar panel actually uh the company
gives the money gets the money and or the electricity goes to Jersey Central Power and Light or whatever company they're going to give it to. >> Correct. They generate they install the infrastructure for the carports. They install the panels. They install the equipment. They own and they operate all
this equipment all the panels throughout the duration of their lease. that power is generated and distributed back uh to the electric company. >> So, the church that really has nothing to do with it. >> Nope. >> It's the solar panel company that that runs it all.
>> Correct. Again, we do a lot of these projects on large warehouses, self- storage facilities that have an abundance of roof area. This one is not a roof area. They have an abundance of parking lot. So, we are leasing that area in kind of uh twofold. where we have parking spaces and now we're taking
the area above the parking and turning it into solar. >> Okay. Any other questions? >> My report asked if there were lights the panels. >> Uh we would work with the church to make
sure that it's consistent with the lighting patterns that they have now. This would not be something if their lights turn off at a certain time, the panels underneath would do as well. Yep. Are the lights on the paddles powered by the panels? >> They would be. Yep, they would be.
>> Yep. >> Anyone else? >> I have a comment. There was just a solar panel company that went under last year. >> These companies fold very easily. I mean my office has been doing
applications for solar landscape probably for five or six years now I think and we work we have projects all over the state so I mean I can I'll have Mr. While sort of
address that but you know how his company functions. >> Sure. Uh, a lot of the solar panel companies that you hear about going under are largely residential solar companies because they're out being outco competed by companies like us where you don't have to put it on your roof or you can be an offtaker if you live in an apartment where you don't
have a roof. Um, this just ends up being a much more affordable and lower risk option for most residential homeowners. >> But just to differentiate yourself, you're not putting panels on residential properties. Yeah.
>> No. No. you. That's the beauty of the program is you can benefit from solar without having to put it on your roof. >> So, it's primarily large parking lots like this and we talked a lot about today about large industrial buildings and you're going on the roof. Those are the types of projects.
>> Correct. That that's our core business. >> Any other questions? At night, nothing's generated or are there? >> Uh, no. I in the past I have seen solar panels kick on in a full moon. Very rare occurrence, but it's probably not going
to happen. >> Okay. You want to call your next witness? >> And yes, our last witness will be our planner. That's Mr. Janu. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Sorry. >> Tell the truth and hold truth. Nothing but the truth. So I hope you got >> I do. >> Thank you.
>> Uh so if you could just give us the benefit of your uh education and experience, please sir. >> Certainly. My name is Andrew Janu. It's spelled J an II W. I'm a principal in the firm of Beacon Planning and Consulting Services. have been for the past 27 years a bachelor's and master's
degree in civil engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. I'm currently serving as the planner for the Bureau of Carter, the Burrow of Freehold, uh Livingston Township. >> We we accept your credentials. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh I will say I have
represented uh private clients throughout the state and solo landscape. I think I've done in excess of 25 applications this year throughout the state. Uh so as uh as was mentioned uh I was here in 2021 testifying when that approval was granted. Uh the uh there
was extensive discussion at the time about the zoning and the application of the special economic development to zone because the while the property was put in the waterfront redevelopment area, it wasn't included within the plan. So there weren't any alternate standards if you will adopted for this. So therefore
we were adjudicated at the time in presenting tonight under the standards for the special economic development 2 zone. Uh we are asking for a D1 use variance for the solar panels. Uh that was granted in 2021. Uh we are eliminating the variance uh that was
granted at the time with respect to the rear yard setback. And while we presented the application in significantly similar configuration at the time, um was missed by both parties that the solar panels along the main street extension were within 10 ft of
the property line where 60 ft was required and we're here to include that uh variance request tonight. Uh with respect to this application, um we are actually reducing the intensity of the overall scale of development while still producing the
same amount of energy. It was about 3 million kilowatt hours, enough to power approximately 350 homes. Uh you had testimony how we are reducing the number of panels from 6,171 to 4,257.
Um and which translates to we will now be covering 497 parking spaces whereas the previous canopies uh were proposed over 581 spa spaces. So that's kind of the reduction of the scale uh just in terms of size but still generating the
same amount of energy. Uh so in preparation for this evening, I did review your ordinances, your master plan, the prior approval. I've reviewed the review letters that were issued relative to this application as well as the application and all the correspondence related to that. Um with respect to your master plan, I think the
latest uh re-examination report was in 2023. And in fact, in that re-examination report, there is a recommendation that reads, "The incorporation of renewable energy and efficient building design and development projects to manage energy use should be uh encouraged." And we are
on point with that um recommendation within your master plan. Um and as this board knows, a variance isn't granted for the sole benefit of an applicant. There has to be a public purpose. And I believe uh there are several that are advanced by this application. public purposes are defined within the
municipal land use law. Uh there are 16 reasons with 4055D. Uh and I believe those that are advanced by this application include a to encourage municipal action to guide the appropriate use or development of all lands in the state in a manner which will promote the public health, safety,
morals, and general welfare. I'll address this in a little bit more detail when I go to the D1 variance, but renewable energy sources have been recognized by the state legislature as something that's inherently beneficial, meaning it's something that's a general benefit to to the entirety of the population and should be treated in a
special manner. Essentially, the uh tag of inherently beneficial satisfies the positive criteria in the D1 variance and we concentrate on the negative criteria. Um I also want to discuss that uh as part of that we do discuss health, safety, morals and general welfare. And
I've been doing solar applications probably for in excess of 20 years. And to answer your question regarding uh not that I'm an expert in the chemistry behind solar panels, but I've learned enough over the years to understand there are two types of solar panels. There's a cadmium based panel and a
siliconebased panel. uh virtually every application I represented throughout the state of New Jersey is a siliconbased panel which is made out of silicon which is essentially the same material that we make. It's a sand that we make glass out of and it goes here and it's a non-toxic material. Silicon is non-toxic. The
cadmium panels which were probably part of that special that you watched with respect to solar panels is a toxic chemical. Those are also reflective panels which is why nobody uses them. They have a film with a chemical underneath them to generate the electricity. They're actually cheaper
than the silicone panels. Um, but virtually no one I know uses those and I don't I haven't seen a cadmium panel quite frankly in over 20 years when I first saw somebody represent the two and discuss the differences between the two. But this is strictly a silicone base and
it's a very safe material. Uh the second uh purpose of municipal land use law that we advance is to provide sufficient space in appropriate locations for a variety of agricultural, residential, recreational, commercial, and industrial uses uh in order to meet
the needs of all New Jersey citizens. So this application was already heard by this board. It was deemed that this is an appropriate type of accessory use for this. While the energy generated here isn't for the church itself, it does go back to the grid and benefits the public at large. 51% of the energy will be uh
offered as a priority to affordable housing units to low and moderate income housing units. The rest is available to the general public. So, I do think it's a good location, excuse me. Um, and will work well with the parking lot. These types of community solar panels, as was
mentioned, typically go on rooftops, go in parking lots and the like. It is an appropriate type of location for this use. uh M is to coordinate the various public and private procedures and activities shaping land development with a view of lessening the cost of such development
and the more efficient use of land. Essentially what we're adding here is a secondary use that generates a clean energy source without adding additional impervious coverage without additioning additional drainage requirements. Uh so in terms of lessening the cost and furthering that purpose, I think we're
on point. And finally, the uh N which speaks for itself is to promote utilization of renewable energy sources. Take a drink of water real quick. My apologies. getting over a cold and uh tending to dry out.
Which leads us to the D1 variance relief that we're seeking. And as I mentioned, uh solar facilities such as this are recognized by the state legislature as inherently beneficial. And that's defined within the municipal land use law as a use which is universally considered of value to the
community because it fundamentally serves the public good and promotes the general welfare. Such uses include, but aren't limited to, hospitals, schools, child care facilities, group homes, and wind, solar, or photovalttaic energy facilities and structures. So, we do fall within that. So, when an inherently
beneficial use has been recognized to satisfy the positive criteria of a D1 variance, that shifts the focus to the negative criteria. And the legislature established that when we're looking at inherently benefic excuse me the appropriate test to measure the negative criteria is what's known as the seeka
balance test. And there are four four prongs to that. Uh the first is to identify the public interest at stake. The f the public interest at stake here is the generation of clean community available energy. The second is to identify any detrimental effects that'll
be uh generated from the grant of the various. So here we look at noise, traffic, trash. None of that's going to be compounded by this application. What we are doing is asking for relief to put the panels within 10 ft of the main street extension. However, we're going
to mitigate that through buffering and planting. And if you look at I believe it's pages 10 and 11 of the landscape plan, you'll see there are trees planted along along Main Street Extension there in order to soften the impact of that. And then finally uh we weigh the
positive and negative criteria terms of uh what nuisances what factors have we identified that would create a substantial detriment to the public. I don't believe there are any. I think we further the purposes of your uh most uh recent master plan re-examination and we
are providing clean energy to the community. So when we look at this imbalance I do think it's a good application. Excuse me. Finally going to the C variance uh we are seeking a setback variance of 10 ft where 60 is required.
Uh we are mitigating that through the use of landscape buffering. Overall we're reducing the intensity of the size of the panels and the massing of the panels that was approved in 2021. So when we look at this unbalance it relates to a specific piece of property.
It furthers purposes of the municipal land use law. The benefits outweigh any any detriments. And finally, we do advance the purposes of your land use ordinance and master plan. So I think when we look at both the D and the C variances, we can adjudicate this in the affirmative. It's good application and
again everyone seeks to promote green energy now. >> Any questions? >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Um you said there was no danger to the cadium. >> Sorry, >> we're not using the cadmium panels. >> You're not. >> These are silicone based panels. >> Okay. And there's no lead in those
panels either. >> Well, the anything with an electrical connection has lead. So, there's lead solder, but it's insignificant amount. The panels themselves, when you're worried about breaking them, that's a siliconebased panel. It's it's essentially a sand product.
>> It also states that the dangers are electrical shock, and that could be from the way it's installed or just from the panel itself. >> So, these are all subject to inspection. Your inspectors will be reviewing these installations. They'll all be done in
conduit and all be uh directed towards the uh essentially the compound with the inverters and the transformers which will ultimately link to the grid. It it is a regulated process that's inspected >> and the end of life solar panels. What happens with the removal?
>> Uh typically once they're removed they're recycled. there is still viability in them and they get quite frankly resold to someone who's look who's who's not necessarily looking to be have the most efficient panels. >> Okay. Say the um you decide or whoever
is um paying for this, they decide they no longer want the panels. What happens then? >> Well, there there is a a plan for the removal and the again the they could be recycled, they could be uh You going to
just leave them there? >> They they're not abandoned in place. No, never. >> Okay. >> There. There's actually quite a value to them at the end of the life cycle because of the the aluminum and the panel itself which can be resold.
>> Is fires one of the dangers of them? >> Not not when installed properly and in this type of situation over a rooftop over a non-combustible surface. No. I don't believe so. >> Mr. Fowler,
>> no other questions. >> No questions. Mr. Cornell, >> anyone from the board have any questions of this witness? >> I'd just like someone to explain that the um there was another approval. Jay, I think it was in your memo by the uh
>> Mr. Chairman, you may recall this applicant was scheduled to be before you a couple months ago and we had brought to their attention the Riverton approval. They had to widen what's now known as River Riverton Boulevard used to be Chevier Avenue and reconfigure the parking lot on the church property. The
original plans that were provided didn't take that in consideration. So since then they've revised the plans to include the Riverton improvements so they're not impacting what Riverton was proposing. So what's before you now does not conflict with Riverton. There was another board that had also had a voice
in this. I guess the economic development. >> Oh, the redevelopment agency. Yes. >> Explain how that fits in with everything >> because this is in a redevelopment area. The first step in the process is to appear before the redevelopment agency and get their concurrence. They had signed off on the previous approval.
They also signed off on the amended approval and I provided a copy of their sign off with my report. So, redevelopment agencies had to sign off because this is in a redevelopment area. They granted their approval. >> They granted They granted approval and gave permission to come before this
board with the revised application. >> They don't grant site plan approval. That's why we're here tonight. But yeah, >> and and the planning board uh approval came in 2021. Well, this board approved this application in 2021. This board also
approved the modifications to the church property for the Riverton project, which had to do with roadway widening. >> Right. Yeah. 2021 it it still had that Dvarian so it was before your zoning board. >> Any other questions?
>> No further questions. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. >> So we have no further witnesses. I'll just very briefly say I think we've uh per Mr. January's testimony we've excuse me satisfied the positive and negative criteria. I think we've explained how
the process works, how they get installed, how they get removed, what you know that there's no real safety concerns. So, we would submit that this application should be approved as presented. >> You say the positive and negative. What negative have you shown?
>> Well, Mr. I mean, Mr. Janu can certainly address that better than I can, but when I I've referenced the negative criteria, so we've shown that it isn't detrimental to the neighborhood or and we've shown that it is not detrimental to the zoning plan or the master plan. No substantial detriment to the zoning plan or the
master plan. In fact, I think Mr. Jenner's testimony was that it was consistent with the master plan. Yeah. >> That's a negative. >> Okay. Oh, okay. No further. >> That's it. Yeah.
>> Your your your testimony. Rest at this. >> Yes. I'm sorry. Yes, we're resting now. >> Okay. I'm going to open this to the public. Is there anyone from the public who wishes to speak in reference this application? Hearing no one from the public, I'm
going to close the public portion. What's the pleasure of the board concerning this application? >> Motion to approve. >> Second. >> I have a motion and a second to approve this application.
>> Roll call. >> Mr. Green. >> Yes. >> Mr. Kazinski? >> Yes. >> Mr. Espazito? >> Yes. >> Mrs. Godstein? Yes. >> Mr. Castle Grant? >> Yes. >> Miss Cassandi? >> No. >> Mr. Cooper? >> Yes.
Okay. Thank you. Have a good evening. >> We will we will make this resolution next month. >> Sure. Thank you. Send me the transcript. >> Yes. Once we have them, I'll send them to you. Yeah. And yeah, I'll make sure it gets to go. Thank you.
Uh the only thing that we have left on >> has everyone had the opportunity to uh look over the November 25th regular uh minutes meeting. >> Yes. >> Yes.
>> The pleasure concerning those minutes. Second >> motion to accept. Roll call. >> Mr. Green. >> Yes. >> Mr. Kazinski. >> Yes. >> Mr. Espazito.
>> Abstain. >> Mrs. Scott. >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Okay. Uh, I just want to let everyone take notice here that
our next meeting is January the 28th at 7:30 and that is our reorganization meeting. Usually every year we have it at 7:00. We're changing that where it's the reorg will be at 7:30 and then right after the
reorg we'll have our regular meeting. Why waste an extra half an hour when we can do that in 5 to 10 minutes? So the reorganization meeting is January the 28th >> at 7:30
resolution from last meeting. >> Oh no, I'm waiting on the transcript. >> We have to wait on that one. >> The last thing I want to mention is this is our last meeting of 2025.
I want to thank everyone for your cooperation with everything that we did this year. I thank you for making my job a lot easier and it was a pleasure working with everyone here and I hope to see everyone
next year. Merry Christmas, happy new year and happy holidays. >> And with that and with that I'm going to adjourn this meeting. This meeting is now adjourned.