good evening and welcome to the public hearing for the township of Livingston zoning Board of adjustment today is Tuesday November 28th 2023 if you are an applicant for a d or a use variance you should be aware that such a variance can only be granted after showing that special reasons for the grant of the variance exists and that variance can be granted without substantial detriment to the zoning plan of the township of Livingston you should also be aware that in order to be granted such a variance you will require an affirmative vote of five members of the seven member Board of adjustment other variances require a majority of four members to grant that variance if you are an applicant for any variance and your variance is denied by this board you have a right to appeal to the superior court of the state of New Jersey within 45 days of notice of decision and that Court May overturn this decision the decision of this board if you're an objector to any type of variance that has been granted you too May appeal to the superior court of the state of New Jersey within 45 days of the notice of decision if you do file an appeal I ask that you please provide a copy of your complaint to the planning administrator Jackie Hollis pursuant to the requirements of the open public meetings act also known as the Sunshine Law adequate notice of this meeting was provided to The Star Ledger and West essic Tribune and a cop copy was also posted on the bulletin board of the municipal building in addition to having notice posted notice of this meeting was placed on the Township's website members of the public will have an opportunity to ask questions or make statements regarding each application at the appropriate time when the time comes if you would like to address the board please come to the front and use the microphone so we can make sure your comments or questions are part of the record we will now call the role Mr nardone here Miss Khan is here Mr fronty here Miss V here and I'll note that Miss Hollis the planning administrator is here miss Madre the planning coordinator and Mr jemus of the township attorney for the evening thank you Miss Khan will you please call the first application don't we have to call them first yeah yeah call them first the first the first block number 1704 lot 1989 East mclen Avenue application number 20232 V Gary and Darice T Faro applicant seeks approval for a two-car garage in violation of the following section 17- 87 e1a accessory Building height 13 ft allowed 18 ft proposed 5 fet variance requested M Mr Mrs Taro hi um unfortunately this evening we only have five members of the zoning board present tonight and as you're aware Mr Beer needs to recuse himself um your variance requir is a d variance which requires a vote of five you need five affirmative votes so we need to adjourn this application until our next meeting which is December 12th yes um but we can wave any additional notices required come back on Tuesday on the 12th thank you sorry for the inconvenience Miss Conan will you please call the second application we're g to go to I'm sorry yeah number three number three number three block 5800 Lot 19 two Squire Court application number 20234 5-v Fernway Builders LLC applicant seeks approval for the installation of a covered porch in the rear yard in violation of the following section 17097 C4 rear yard setback 50 ft required 42.4 feet proposed 7.96 feet variance requested there we go hello good evening Madam chair members of the board uh it's a pleasure to be here in beautiful Livingston this evening my name is Derek orth from the law firm of engino Taylor located in parpy New Jersey I'm here tonight on behalf of the applicant Fernway Builders LLC the applicant and the Builder of this lovely single family home located at two Squire Court Livingston New Jersey the property is identified as uh Miss Khan helpfully noted as block 5800 Lot 19 on Livingston's official tax map and is located in the Township's R2 Zone District we are here this evening seeking approval of a rear yard setback variant for a covered patio which extends 7.96 ft into the permitted rear yard setback of the home specifically The Zone ordinance requires a rear yard setback of 50 ft whereas the applicant is proposing a rear yard setback of 42.0 4 ft as the board can see from the photographs and the asilt survey that we submitted in connection with the application the home is fully constructed and the covered patio with the section of the firplace has been installed and this was done prior to the filing of this application and was a result of an honest mistake by the applicant and its professionals during the permitting process for which we beg the board's forgiveness uh in short at some point during the permitting process the applicant and his professionals Incorporated a covered patio into the permitting plans we did so without knowing that this modification violated the rear yard setback standards in the R2 Zone and simply thought that it created a nice place for family to gather on the weekends and the evenings uh in the in the rear yard uh during inspections uh Livingston's construction Department noticed this issue and advised us that we needed to seek bulk variants relief from the Zoning Board in order to permit this covered patio to remain and that is why we are here this evening in terms of witnesses I have two for the board's consideration this evening this includes sanket Shaw the builder of the home the principal of Fernway Builders LLC who is also a Livingston res president and we also have Brian Conway of Casey and Keller who's our planner uh who will provide some brief testimony regarding the requested variance relief um I know that everyone here is a volunteer Madam chair so we have prepared a brief and efficient presentation for the board's consideration this evening uh so with that introduction Madam chair um if I may call Mr sank Shaw to be sworn in by Mr jemus or whomever and uh he can start his testimony Mr Shaw uh do you swear or affirm that all the statements you'll make to the board today will be true complete and accurate yes I do consider yourself under oath yes I do thank you thank you Mr jamus so I'm just going to speak loudly so we can kind of share the microphone this evening um but Mr Shaw why don't you just introduce yourself to the board you're a Livingston resident correct yes I for the last uh 10 years now and have you you're a builder of single family homes in Livingston and other areas in the Essex County suburbs correct that is correct Y and you constructed this building at uh the structure the single family home at two Square Court that is right okay and do you have any uh photographs of the subject property you would like to show the board this evening Mr Conway is doubling as the uh worker of our PowerPoint presentation this evening I hope that's acceptable to the board so that's the most uh at least from my end the most beautiful house that we ever built it faces the golf course uh a very large property and it's the home on the right correct that's the home on the right that's right yeah and this picture isn't in our packet correct actually that's correct Madam chair this is I believe a drone photograph that was not included in the packet so a similar one is there no but so we'll mark this as a one please yes ma'am thank you okay and Mr Conway if you may be so kind as to just point out the uh covered patio that is the subject of the application this evening there it is um any other photographs you'd like to show the board Bri if you mind and why don't you just identify the home for the bo the home is on the bottom right and it backs into the whole golf course in the back it's got some beautiful vist of views from you know from the porch from the sidey yard from the front yard as well high quality construction materials correct absolutely Y and the uh the fireplace in the back has not yet been completed correct that's correct and that was because you were notified by the construction Department that we require the rear yard setback parents correct that is and should the board approve this application this evening uh you would complete the construction of the fireplace correct that is correct very good Brian anything else yes Madam chairman can I just ask a question please Mr Shaw will you uh confirm that those photographs that we've just shown A1 and A2 accurately pick what's shown on those things are that correct that is cor thank you very much and uh Mr jemus what I will do um after the hearing concludes this evening I will email uh PDF copies of any exhibits that we have presented tonight so very much and this is a front view of the home correct that is right and this has been fully constructed and when did you take these uh photographs here uh just a month back when the new owners moved in and this was submitted with the application materials correct yes okay I think that's enough for um the board to get an idea of the quality of this home's construction and essentially all the factual details that you can you know provide for the board this evening is there anything else you'd like to add um just to say that you know we were never never had the intention of either bypassing code of process like Derek mentioned it was an honest mistake thank you uh Mr straw I have no further questions on Direct Madam chair thank you does anyone on the board have any questions for this witness was the ptico the rear was that shown on the original plans on a subsequent plan during the framing rough framing it was it was shown it was shown and submitted to the building department yes I guess they missed it any further questions witness does anyone in the public have any questions for this witness thank you thank you madam chair members of the board uh I have no you're good to go you can stay here if you'd like but you can relax uh my next witness is Mr Conway who's our professional planner for this evening Conway do you swear or affirm that any statements in all statements you make the bo to this evening will be true accurate and complete yes I do consider yourself under oath thank you and Mr Conway before you get started would you please provide the board with a very brief overview of your professional qualifications as a planner confirming that your licenses are in good standing and effect in the state of New Jersey certainly um my name is Brian Conway I'm a graduate of Cook College ruers University my degree is in environmental planning and design um I've been a licensed landscape architect since 1992 and a license planner since 1994 my my licenses are all current and in in place I've been before the planning board and the zoning Board in Livingston numerous times testify to numerous boards as a planner as a landscape architect throughout the state of New Jersey thank you Mr Conway Madam chair we profer him as an expert in the field of professional planning thank you does anyone on the board have any questions or objections there being no objections the witness is accepted as an expert in the field of planning thank you madam chair Mr Conway if you want to just uh take it away for us thank you before you um get started just kindly confirm any exhibit that you showed tonight was either included with the submission packet or should be marked as an exhibit appropriately I believe that this was part of the submission packet it's our as build um as build survey this was included Madam chair um I get the date on it but the screen's really small I have a hard Comfort here it's dated August 31st AUST 31st 2023 so the subject property is located at the southern corner of Squire Court in Walnut Street in the R2 residence District the subject property is an unusually shaped lot of 25,27 ft² or 0.575 Acres it's a corner corner lot with Frontage on Squire court and Walnut Street the lot is 20 um 20.5 ft deep along the Eastern property line and it is 115 ft deep along the western property line and what that does is it sets the geometry of the rear lot line which is on the south side of the property at a 53 degree angle to Walnut Street which is part of um the issue we have with our setback I'm just giving some background information on the lot and the uh the layout of the property a 2 and a half story single family family home was permitted and constructed by uh Fernway Builders the has built conditions and the application the front of the house faces Squire court and the orientation is parallel to the Eastern sideline during the course of construction a covered patio was added to the scope of the project over what what is a compliant patio and a fireplace in the rear yard there is some confusion amongst the Fernway team regarding the setbacks and the covered patio was submitted for a frame framing permit in good faith it was later discovered that there was a mixup that put a portion of the roof in violation of the rear yard setback and we are here tonight to seek variants relief for this the part of the um if you look at the plant in the center of the rear of the house there's the um covered P covered patio and about 115 Square ft a diagonal piece of the end of it it is what is in violation of the the setback so a few specifics for the lot the front yard which faces Squire Court a minimum 60 foot setbacks required um a 67.1 n foot setback was provided the Western sideline along Walnut Street a 50ft setback is required a 50.5 n foot was provided along the Eastern sideline 15 foot was um required and 15.17 provided and on the rear yard to the South um minimum 50 ft required the setback to the house proper is 51.1 3 ft and the setback to the covered patio the roof roof the area is 4 2.04 ft which is a variance of 7.96 Ft the rear yard of this property faces the sidey yard of the neighboring property to the South 97 Walnut Street um there's an attached garage on the north side of the house as well as um parking and driveway along their entire Northern boundary which shares our our our lot line so our rear rear line our rear yard ABS their sidey yard and a in a utilitarian aspect of their yard which is their driveway their parking area and their garage the house was permitted and constructed in accordance with all applic zoning and building codes with the exception of the covered patio um just wanted to have a little discussion about covered patios covered patios are a residential amenity that is usual and customary for new luxury residential construction in a postco world I think we've all learned to uh cherish and appreciate our Outdoor Living Spaces patios provide Outdoor Living Spaces the patio that we uh that was built here is completely zoning compliant there's a fireplace that was also under construction which is also zoning compliant that provides visual interest as well as to serve to mitigate the cold weather use of the patio the roof over the patio which is why we're here today um provides additional opportunity to utilize the patio in inclement weather such as rain or snow the other big Advantage why a lot of uh people put the the covered patios is uh the the patios become an outdoor living space and typically they get furnished with u furniture and cushions Etc and having a roof over it uh lets the The Outdoor Living Spaces be ready for use at any given point in time year round with minimal amount of setup based upon this analysis it's my opinion that this proposal is not inconsistent with the concept of maintaining our neighborhood character um I think we're going to look at a C2 variance for this where the purposes of Municipal land use would be Advanced by a deviation from zoning ordinance requirements and the net benefits of the deviation would substantially outweigh any detriment with the flexible C is what we'd be looking for better planning alternative so I I think that the variance application is support supported by the purposes of the act the municipal luse law 40 call 55 d-2 um a to encourage mun Municipal action to guide the appropriate use or development of lands in a manner that will provoke General Welfare to provide adequate light air and open space and to promote a v that's C and then I to promote desirable visual environment through creative development techniques and good Civic design and arrangements so to go into a little bit more detail on each one of these the general welfare The Proposal is consistent with the state's master plan objective of smart growth because it's part of an updated new home with current amenities replacing an existing older home advances General Welfare it's a positive impact on the neighborhood it's an investment on the neighbor in the neighborhood with a new home construction with customary amenities generally has a positive effect on the the value of neighboring homes in in terms of light air and open space as previously discussed the covered patio provides an enhanced outdoor living area to enjoy the benefits of light air and open space there's also been an evergreen buffer that's been planted to help buffer the um covered patio and the desirable visual environment construction of a new home that is neighborhood and Market appropriate with nice amenities helps enhance the town as well as the neighborhood I believe the benefits outweigh the detriments for negative criteria um no variance or other relief can be granted without showing that such variance can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and it will not substantially impair the intent or purpose of the Zone plan and zoning ordinance in so far as being granted without sub substantial detriment to the public good the rear yard setback Varian is for a small portion of the covered uh patio 115 Square ft which is the uh 7.96 ft is the peak of the triangle and the Corner lock configuration places the rear yard of this Pro property adjacent to the side yard of the neighbor the side yard of the neighboring property is largely occupied by driveway and parking area with the garage at that end of the home therefore no living no living space therefore the requested variant would not impact the adjacent neighbor and it will not substantially impair the intent or purpose of the Zone planning zone zoning ordinance it provides a new Housing Opportunity with contemporary amenities that is well suited for the town and the neighborhood that concludes my testimony be happy to answer any question of providing additional information I have nothing further for Mr Conway on Direct thank you does anyone on the the board have any questions for this witness I have a question so um thank you very much for your testimony when Mr nardone asked you if this was on the original plan you said yes right this is the ASU plan but the original plan that was submitted was the Portico on the original plan no it was not all right because you did say during the course of construction the Portico was added it was added while the house was being under construction okay and and my understanding uh Miss Khan is that was added during the frame permit process so it was added at some level during the permitting process it was not on the original construction set with the covered patio and the applicant Incorporated it during the process and later on we realized the zoning department informed us that had violated the setback standard because of the covered patio I know I'm just I'm just confused because it was built during you during the framing process but was it approved when you obviously wasn't approved when you were building it you just like I'm just if you could just clear that up my understanding is it was approved from a construction standpoint but at the framing permit level it's not reviewed necessarily from a zoning standpoint so that's where I believe the issue came from okay all right you you got to clear that up for me you file for permits you get the permits and framing starts did they build a portico before he submitted the revised plans for the Portico they did footing and Foundations first okay and then they proceeded to framing correct framing okay and did the framing permit have the yes yes the framing permit had the Portico on the plants that had the roof structure on the pl that's good and the zoning department overlooked it but then notified him at a later date that it was overlooked and that he would need to comply that is correct Mr nardone okay just wanted to clear it up any questions does anyone in the public have any questions for this witness thank you and the last thing I'll add uh Madam chair is that we did get a memo from uh Mr baruchi uh in commenting on the application we have no issue complying with that memorandum and that is all for my uh direct presentation any questions from the board we're happy to have them or from the public thank you thank you does anyone on the board have any questions about this application does anyone in the public have any questions about this application would anyone in the public like to make a statement about this application would anyone on the board like to make a statement about this application okay I'd like to make a motion block 5800 L 192 Squire Court application number 2023 d45 DV Fernway Builders LLC um I would like to make a motion to approve this application I'll second okay so motion by Miss Conan second by Mr AR freny okay Mr nardone yes you start with you first I start with me Miss Khan says yes Mr nardone yes you said yes mrun Mr funti yes okay um Mr Beer yes Miss F yes motion passes one two three four five okay thank you madam shair thank you members of the board we appreciate your time thank you thank you okay um Miss K will you please call the next application block 7401 lot 48 forom Road application number 2023 49- V4 Waterfall Drive LLC applicant seeks approval to construct a new single family home in violation of the following sections 17 70- 87 CC1 habitable floor ratio 15% allowed 18.9% proposed 3.9% feet variance requested there we go one more time all right good evening everyone my name is Matthew pad I'm with Law Firm SS cus and gross and I represent the applicant for Te Waterfall Drive LLC in connection with this application for habal floor area ratio the applicant is here tonight proposing to demolish the existing single family home which is a ranch with a basement to propose a new twostory single family home the proposed application is fully conforming but for the racio which is in a direct correlation with the minimum lot size issue which is an existing non-conformity the habital floor area that we are proposing here tonight is 4,743 Ft which is approximately 1,400 Square ft below the permitted floor area ratio if this was a conforming lot size the proposed habitable floor area ratio is was specifically designed be given the fact that the actual lot size today is 25,000 Square ft 25,000 Square ft is the minimum lot size for an R2 and although we're not an R2 R2 does permit a of existing Improvement to be up to 48 4,870 which is why we chose a h floor area ratio of 4,743 given the ratio of 18.9 with that being said for tonight's application I will have two witnesses my first witness will be my architect John ersen and my second will be my planner Nick gravano if I may like to call my first witness my architect uh Mr John ersen SAR or affirm that all the statements you make that the board this evening will be true accur and in complete I do can you state your name and your address please sure it's uh John ersen last name e rzn uh I reside at 18 tuxedo Lane in uh Congress New York thank you consider yourself under off I do John can you please provide your educational credentials and also whether or not you're licens in New Jersey is still in good standing sure uh I graduate from the New York Institute of Technology uh I hold a bachelor in architecture and uh I do have U I'm a registered architect in New Jersey and good standing and can you just name one or two boards where you even qualified before in the past as an architect uh one would be uh Cliffside Park and the other one would be North Bergen thank you does board accept him as an expert in architecture thank you does anyone on the board have any questions or objections then we there be no objections the way witness is expect is accepted as offered thank you so much John are you familiar with the R1 zoning District yes I am and is this proposed single family home within the R1 Zone District correct uh have you had an opportunity to review the proposed plans for the subject site yes I have can you please walk us through the proposed plans including the details for both the elevations and the floor layouts sure um so if we go to sheet uh zero I'm sorry a001 which is the first uh sheet of the submission set dated 61523 uh this basically has the proposed layout for the site plan uh a rendering of what the final construction is going to be for the uh proposed home and the bulk table for the uh requirements so shifting to sheet a101 which is is the second sheet in the set um I'll take you briefly through the first floor plan which is also the ground floor um so we enter through the main foyer area and we have a double height space this is also serves for the grand stair I'll work my way clockwise throughout the Set uh I'm trying to read it here this the dining room will be the first room on the left off the foer followed by the den which has a walkout area in the front of the building uh this is access through a hallway which adjacent to that will be the pantry behind the kitchen uh the kitchen and the great room is an open uh plan uh which also has an island and within the great room um trying to imagine the space but it'll be a vaulted ceiling which actually opens up into the balcony or walkway above the um on the second floor um serving off the great room we also have the sun room and uh there'll be a small Powder Room uh serving the ground floor and between that space uh we have a a little Nook area where they're shelving for books and then you come into a living room area uh to the bottom right hand corner will be uh the guest room which is also going to serve as the in-law suite uh this also encompasses a walk-in uh closet and a bathroom that just serves primarily for that room I'll switch over to the uh second floor plan which is a102 um as you can see there's a set of stairs that comes up into the um second floor from the the uh main entry foer uh going again to the left hand side we have two bedrooms uh they're typically around the the average range of what it is uh you know the average size bedrooms uh being built uh in today's uh marketing uh between those two bedrooms we have a laundry room and uh serving between the two bedrooms will be access to a uh uh a bathroom which serves those two bedrooms uh double vanity and then there'll be a separate room where the the toilet and the uh the tub is for privacy uh off the bottom leftand bedroom there is a balcony which uh gives some views of the street in front of forom Road and also the views of the uh the the property in front of the the front yard uh moving across the walkway from the two bedrooms on the leand side across the walkway like I uh mentioned before we have a a balcony with a railing that over looks into the uh the great room so it's a nice aesthetic it it gives a very open feel uh not only from the walkway you can see the the great room but on the opposite side you'll have that open fo area so directly across from the walkway about midspan uh you have another bedroom um this is more like an on Suite so we have two closets there as well as its own independent bathroom uh they have also a linen closet adjacent to that and following down to the walkway to the right hand side of the building we have a uh the master bedroom suite so this encompasses the master bedroom itself a very large walk-in closet and a double vanity bathroom with a a towel closet a private uh uh water closet as well as a tub and a shower going down excuse me going down to the the next floor which is the basement level uh this is sheet a103 uh in this basement going down the stairs you head toward the front of the building um front of the house and we enter into what would be the recck room or Game Room uh it's a multi-use room for whatever they decide to uh to finish it as off the recck room we have another bathroom that serves for the B uh the basement itself and then we have an office SL guest room on the left hand side of the uh the house itself which also by code we have an egress window well and a secondary uh laundry room to the right hand side of the house we have a three car garage uh one which will be used for the in-laws as well okay move to sheet a201 uh the next sheet as well will be um uh four elevations for all four sides so this depicts the overall look of the house uh as proposed uh again in the front we could see on the left hand side there's a balcony there'll be a little covered area for the den covered porch the materials are going to be uh a Hardy plank horizontal siding the windows are vol casements which some of them are accomp accompanied by uh either a hopper window or transom uh just to give it a nice aesthetic look also and the height of the building is I believe 34 fo8 according to my notes 346 to be precise uh so we are still remaining within the height of the building although the existing building right now is a one-story building so not much to say about the uh the north elevation which is the rear of the building but again you can see that sloped roof in the back which is covering the great room and we have the sloped roofs on the right hand side and the leand side again same materials that are complete uh around the the house itself going to sheet a22 this is the right hand elevation where the three garages are and this will be facing the east side of the property again same materials that are consistent with the front back and rear and the sides um the west elevation again um we could see the balcony and the covered entry and the roofs itself so the the actual footprint of the existing house as it sits on the lot um is 2853 square feet although that we are looking for relief for the variance of the floor area the actual footprint of the house is going to be less than what it is now the only thing we're essentially doing is putting a second floor above it um we also are not exceeding the uh 400 um I'm sorry the 4,870 square ft that would be required in an R2 being that we're 25,000 Square ft uh non-conforming with the lot size itself so that being said the even with the proposed 4,743 square feet we would be less than what would be required for an R2 so our feeling with even though we're asking for uh this variance that the building itself would not be at a scale and would be uh consistent with the the neighborhood uh characteristics so that concludes my testimony if anybody has any questions or and just clarification when it comes to the double counting we have that right which causes an increase in the ratio correct so uh by definition with the the town of Livingston uh we would only be counting the double height uh floor area on the second floor in the the uh entry foer the backside uh is not included uh according to the definition so we're only double counting the uh the front foer area so even though we're you know counting that at square foot we're not really using that space itself and it also I believe the Livingston zoning code permits a reduction of the hab floor ratio of approximately 450 sare ft for garages but is it true and accurate that our garage exceeds 450 Square fet so that we can have a three-car garage uh in law Suite yeah that is correct and I believe we're at 820 sare ft total for the three-car garage uh that would bring us um it would be 350 about 350 square feet uh that would be taken and included into that habitable floor area so that that that would be the difference between the 850 and uh the 450 allowed uh counting as a reduction for the floor area great I have no further questions for this witness thank you does anyone on the board have any questions for this witness sure so you're proposing for the habitable floor ratio it's 15% you're proposing 18.9 correct correct okay the ordinance is I'm reading your zoning table you put on here 3750 square feet and you're proposing 4743 I looked at it what am I missing here well that that calculation would only be if our lot size was 35250 um we were at 25 I think it basically shows that uh what the hardship would be for the 3,000 because we couldn't design so you're just an illustration well that's that's the ordinance as if we follow the ordinance without going for a variance so the proposed is what we're going for um although it we're shown uh 4,74 43 that's based on a 25,000 ft lot so this is similar to what you have for an R2 um so we we're thinking that as far I think you're missing his question his question was whether or not it was an illustration and that's exactly what it is it's 15% of what the minimum lot size is 25,000 to make it conforming which would be the 3750 if if we had to conform to what the VAR uh I'm sorry the ratio is that's what we would have to hold to yeah that's 15 okay sorry for the confusion does anyone else on the board have any questions for this Witness I actually have one little minor clarification I'm still messing with the numbers on a102 I assume bedroom 5 is not bedroom five yeah yeah that that is a typo okay okay does anyone in the public have any questions for this witness okay thank you okay Madam chair M of the board thank you for your time thank you thank you so much I'd like to call my Final witness my planner Nick graviano you swear or affirm that any statements you give to the board this evening will be true accurate and complete I do your name add yes my first name is Nicholas with an H last name gravano g a v is and Victor i a n o a business address of 101 Crawford's Corner Road in Hell New Jersey thank you consider yourself I'm sorry what what I usually operate I don't have to press the button so I'm getting used to it at my age uh consider yourself under oath thank you thank you uh Nick can you please provide your educational credentials whether or not your license is still good standing certainly I hold a bachelor's degree from Ruckers University a master's degree in city and Regional planning from Ruckers University a law degree from the Temple University School law where I received the distinguished class performance in state and local government law I hold an aicp certification as well as a New Jersey Professional planning license I've testified before over 100 boards in 18 different counties including uh Belleville Caldwell North Caldwell the oranges Maplewood and Newark here in Essex County does this board accept him as an expert in just planning thank you does anyone have any questions or objections okay then uh there being no objections as witness is accepted as offered thank you for having me thank you thank you uh Nick have you had an opportunity to review the proposed plans yes I've reviewed the plans submitted by the applicant I've also had a chance to review uh the municipal correspondence as well as conducting uh two separate site visits to the subject site all right can you please walk us through the proposed variance relief that we're asking before this board uh yes uh as stated previously this is a D4 F variance request for a specific piece of property known as block 7 41 Lot 4 with a street address of 8 forom Road um as you heard in the architectural testimony uh the applicant does seek to demolish the existing single family dwelling uh to replace it with a new single family dwelling uh the applicant is here this evening requesting one variance that's from uh code section 17-8 CC1 in that 15% uh habitable floor ratio is allowed whereas the applicant is proposing 18.9% uh as you heard in previous testimony the applicant lot is under sized at 25,000 square feet whereas 35,2 ft is required in the zone um you also heard that the existing uh footprint of of the current dwelling is 2,853 square ft whereas the applicant's proposed first floor is 2,363 squ Ft so there's roughly uh a 500t reduction in the footprint of this house although the applicant is requesting an F uh variants this evening um I did have a chance to view the surrounding neighborhood and the homes in that neighborhood this is certainly a home that is in keeping with the size and character of the established dwellings in the neighborhood uh furthermore I had a chance to look at tax assessment data which uh gives you the habitable square feet uh of the dwellings in the neighborhood uh the applicants calculation does does actually include a part of the garage which is part of your zoning calculation which which isn't necessarily uh reflected in the assessment data so in looking at that data you know the smallest house on forom road uh measures roughly 2250 Square F feet whereas the largest uh measures roughly 6,100 Square fet so this is certainly a house which is in the the middle uh range of the established square footages of forom Road so when you're looking at the D4 variants and all the times you guys have spent away from your friends and family has taught you that the D4 variants can be uh granted in particular cases and for special reasons that's the positive criteria of the D4 variance additionally as it pertains to the D4 F variants uh New Jersey courts have ruled that this variance is more akin to a conditional use variance uh in that the analysis that the board must face is is that uh whether or not the site site can accommodate uh any problems associated with the uh F variants um this applicant does not need to demonstrate that the property is particularly suited for the more intensive development um with respect to the negative criteria uh no variance relief can be granted without uh showing that there's no substantial detriment to the public good uh nor that there's a uh substantial detriment to the purpose of the Zone plan and zoning ordinance um looking at the positive criteria this certainly advances purpose a of the minicipal land use law to encourage Municipal action to guide the appropriate use of development of lands in a manner which will promote the public health safety morals and general welfare uh this is a new dwelling that's going to be built to Modern codes and standards uh replacing a home that has shown signs of of dilapidation addition Al this is a single family house and a single family Zone it certainly promotes purpose e uh appropriate population densities uh it also advances purpose G to provide sufficient space and appropriate location for a variety of residential uses to meet the needs of New Jersey citizens um moving on to the negative criteria there's certainly no substantial detriment to the public good uh this is a home that is in keeping with the established neighborhood patterns there's no substantial detriment to the Zone plan or zoning ordinance the applicant as you heard testimony uh went through great care to propose a f which is consistent with established lot sizes of your zoning code additionally when you look at this proposal the applicant is not requesting any setback variances is not requesting any height variances uh meets all the required parking is is proposing a three-car garage uh much of which adds to the F and square footage of this dwelling um when you go to the site to topog topography and existing Landscaping in the dwelling do block a substantial view of the house um so I I think based on all of these factors uh there's certainly no uh substantial detriment to the public good or Zone planner zoning ordinance and is it your expert opinion that the site can accommodate the proposed Improvement as no other variances are being triggered certainly uh I think that is a key factor here as well as the actual reduction in building footprint I think when you take all these factors into account and given the undersized nature of the lot uh there's going to be no detrimental impacts of this and the site can certainly accommodate the proposed dwelling that's before the board this evening I have no further questions for this witness thank you does anyone on the board have any questions for this witness does anyone in the public have any questions for this witness thank you yes you indicated that you reviewed the the documents including the project memorandum by Mr maruchi yes all right and that indicates that there is a containing a might contain a precautionary slope and has to you have to comply the applicant would have to comply with 24209 ordinance you familiar with that yes okay and that the applicant will comply with that correct correct and one other item it appears that it may increase the impervious coverage of course that's Mr marci's comment that would require um compliance with management of lot surface drainage ordinance 35 2008 and applicant will comply with that as well correct yes thank you I just want to thank the board for your time tonight and I just want to reiterate that this applicants been substantial consideration of the R2 zoning code although we're not in the R2 we were very conscientious of the fact that this board has already considered what would be appropriate for a 25,000 foot home when designing the proposed Improvement thank you yeah one comment Matt on the um on the plan for what it's worth it's just a little under the ordinance it's just a little confusing because when I compared it with the zoning table that's what threw me off MH you list all the ordin township ordinances except they have that 3750 in there should it should read the 60 in my opinion 6200 should read the 6200 because when I looked at it I'm like something didn't make sense and I knew it was 6200 based on the R1 which threw me off yes so I before you submit them just to avoid any problem I would change that to the 6200 so you're not getting hung up got it we'll deal just my two cents yeah we just want to put in perspective of what would have been tolerated or what would have been appropriate soon to the code but I agree to the CC and the BB of 87 otherwise you're going to be hung up M over something silly yep you get it we'll modify I thank you does anyone in the would anyone in the public like to make a statement about this application would anyone on the board like to make a statement about this application so I Mr pad I want to commend the applicant for taking the time as you said to look at our ordinance for an R2 Zone and it's obvious that the architect and the applicant took great pains to comply with the there are no bulk variances requested um as you said it's it's under the square footage for an R2 house house and so I appreciate the effort that went into that thank you we appreciate it sure yeah all right I'd like to uh make a motion to approve this application I'll second motion by Mr Beer second by Mr nardone Mr Beer yes Mr nardone yes Miss conos yes Mr auny yes Miss pass yes motion passes thank you so much everyone have a great night thank you Miss Conan please call the next application can I BR you block 10001 lot 383 Emerson Drive application number 20235 V Mina and D song applicant seeks approval for a rear and second floor Edition and covered rear porch in violation of the following sections 17099 C3 left left side yard setback 10 ft required 3.91 ft proposed 6.09 ft variance requested 17099 C3 aggregate side yard 30% requested 27% proposed 3 % variance requested hello good evening my name is Mina song I'm a living Livingston resident at three Emerson Drive um my husband Dale song and I uh have two small children at haton elementary school we need to just swear you in first oh I'm so sorry that's okay do you swear or affirm that all the statements you make to the board this evening will be true accurate and complete I do I'm going to do it one more time with the green light on do you do you do you swear or affirm that any and all statements you make to the board this evening will be true accurate and complete I do is anyone else going to testify my architect Lisa waler do you swear or affirm that any statements you make to the board this evening are true will be true accurate and complete oh yes I do yes thanks and Miss Walter will you just run through I know you've been before us before but could you just run through your um qualifications please um I'm a licensed architect in um New Jersey and New York um I've been licensed U since 1984 and um I've testified before this board as well as a lot of other local boards in various towns and your license is still in good standing my license is in good standing thank you um are there any questions or objections then we can accept you as an expert in the field of architecture okay so missong please tell us tell us while you're here uh our family is it as my kids are getting a little bit bigger and we're hoping to expand um our property um which is requiring a variance and I will defer to um Miss waler to explain the details of that variance application okay so um Mina had uh when I met Mina she um um she told me that as she said she needed they her she live their house is a small split level um house um it they currently use the what is the typical like living room as their family room um there is uh the kitchen by a former owner expands it into what was the dining room it's still not very big but there's no there's and then there's a dining room in the back so there's no family room there's a small living room a small kitchen and then a small dining room um um so um the the room that's being used as a family room for the family to watch TV read books whatever you would do um you is has the entry door you open it up you know you open the front door into that room it's open to the kitchen as you can see on the plans so that's the room in the front that says dining uh former living family room we're proposing to use that existing space as the new dining room keep the existing kitchen and all we're looking to do is expand what with is being used as the dining room to make it into a a a decent sized family room so that the family could be together um because of the um nature of the property it the if you look at the site plan the property the existing house is on an angle uh is is not set you know with the street um and so um all we want to do is take the existing room expand it about 4 and half ft so that it becomes a usable room for a family room it's not big but it's a nice 16 by 21 just something that's doable for a family to sit around and watch TV um it it requires a variance just to line up with the existing house um the side yard Pro the side yard setback becomes a little bit smaller but it's um really negligible in the difference because it's just because of that angle it's not going out a lot um but it's coming a little close to of the property um by really just a matter of inches um so the whole addition the part that's actually in requires a variance is just that little corner piece so most of it would not even require a variance but if we set it if we went with what the required setback you'd have an awkward shaped room you you'd have a little piece cut out of the corner so basically we're looking for a sidey setback variant so that we could just create a normal family room um it'll be a family room living room room there's um that'll be there's not a lot of living space it's very hard to add on to a um a split level because as you know like this is the only level that is you know that you can use for those kind of spaces otherwise you're walking up or down spaces um it we also need a the aggregate sidey yard setback variant but that's really doesn't really do anything here because the on that side on the other side of the house um there's a creek between the house this this house and the next house so they're separated so the sidey yard setback is kind of meaningless because there's not another house next door and there's not buildable land there's a creek so um there's a lot of room between this house and the next house way more than the numbers of the setback would indicate um so we're we're also as part of this project um they PL uh the songs plan to like improve the Cosmetic aspect you know they want to do a lot of improvements to the house but if the rooms don't work inside then it doesn't make sense to go ahead and try to you know improve the sighting and the look and all of that um so we're just trying to make the house a little more functional the bedrooms we're also adding um a new primary bedroom because the bedrooms are very small in this house there's not a lot of storage this would allow um to have one small extra room so they wouldn't feel as crowded and and um add some extra closet space to some of the existing bedrooms that's basically it thank you does anyone on the board have any questions for this application um the the property is a I guess a wedge shape right right and that's creating a hardship that is creating the hardship and and I guess the and the pre-existing location of the house on the property is further exacerbating that exactly um there's no other logical place you could make a family room um so we're using basically an existing room just expanding it a tiny bit which could be done but to get a a normal rectangular room right we need to get the variance and it's all has to do with the H the hardship of the house and where it's set on this irregular irregular piece of property um there's no detriment to the neighborhood it wouldn't even the only people that would have you know that um that would be impacted at all and it's so negligible would be the one house next to them they're in favor of it um it their house goes a little further out um it's plenty um for the neighborhood they've got a lot of both houses have a lot of open space in the back um it wouldn't affect anybody else anywhere to we're boxing off the house because of the way that the house sits on the lot while you're here the house we Square the street you wouldn't be here right you're not going past your existing side of your house you're not you're not building out furthering they're not widening it we're just yeah yeah I'm clarifying yep yep okay exactly y yes please so on hearing your testimony would you agree that if a variance were granted by the board the purposes of the municipal land use act would be Advanced rather than yes hindered and the deviation would not substantially uh outweigh any detriment that would cause correct that's your opinion that is my professional opin thank you madam chairman thank you does anyone in the public have any questions on this application would anyone in the public like to make a statement about this application would anyone on the board like to make make a statement about this application do I have I think this is a really nice addition I think he did a great job um making use of the space that you have so can I make a motion sure okay um block 10001 lot 383 Emerson Drive application number 2023503495 motion by Miss Khan second by Mr nardone Miss Khan votes yes Mr nardone yes Mr Fry yes Mr Beer yes Miss F yes motion passes thank thank you thank you thanks K okay Miss Conan please call the next application yes to bring in the documents on a flash drive is there somebody to give it to thank you okay block 1704 Lot 10 90 syes Avenue application number 2023 35- V Bianca Sosa and Kevin Duffy applicant seeks approval for a front covered porch attached one car garage with Second Story and Second Story rear addition and violation of the following sections 17099 C2 front yard setback 40 ft required 37.5 ft proposed 2.5 ft variance requested 17099 C3 right side yard setback 10 ft required 5.75 ft proposed 4.25 feet variance requested 17099 C3 aggregate side yard set back 30% required 24.4% proposed 5.6% variance requested 17099 C4 rear yard setback 35 ft required 13.5 ft proposed 21.5 ft variance requested 17087 bb4 habitable floor area 3220 Square fet allowed 3418 Square F feet proposed 198 square feet variance requested and so so Mr Duffy please tell us why you're here yeah yes please turn your mic on I got it understand I'll learn it sooner or later it only takes me about five years um Miss Sosa Mr Duffy do you swear or affirm that any statements you give to the board this evening will be true accurate and complete we do yes consider yourself under oath thank you okay and Mr I'm sorry sir can I have your name Robert emmer Jr e m t REM do you swear or affirm that any statements you give to the board this evening will be true accurate and complete I do I would suggest that you uh with the permission of the chair that you state your qualifications to the board okay um registered architect in New Jersey my license is valid I have a um I graduated from the University of Kansas in 1983 Mr em can you just use that microphone for me okay is it on yes just I have a two degrees one in a bachelor of environmental science and one at Bachelor of architecture uh and I have testified before this board on numerous occasions as well as Milbourne Summit Teck and various other municipalities and your license are all in good standing yes thank you does anyone on the board have any questions or objections there being no objections the witness is accepted as an expert in architecture proceed good evening um we are here uh in an effort to expand our home uh we purchased it during uh covid my husband's four generations of Liv Livingston uh residents so um the town means a lot to our growing family recently had our first child and we're hoping to build a house that is conducive to our growing family uh as you could see our plans are in front of you but uh just wanted to flag a few of the additions to the house uh that are of extreme value to us it's adding uh an attached garage which I'm sure for anyone that has children you understand in the harsh Winters and with safety that's very important for us to uh include in this uh project uh we are um doing a two ideally a two-story addition to the rear um most importantly to allow the children's bedrooms to be on the same floor as us and to expand our living space uh for again the growing family and potentially uh our F my father-in-law moving in with us uh down the line and then uh expanding the front porch to be flush with the bump out because of the garage addition and ideally a nice place to sit and watch the kids play in the front with neighbors um uh we do have an unusually shaped lot so I know that uh is unfortunately one of the concerns here uh but we have spoken with neighbors and our uh neighbors bordering us um have all been uh supportive of this project okay sure I'm sorry no it's the temperature just dropped to like that's the temperature just dropped like 20 degrees minutes ago maybe that one it's very cold yeah it wasn't like that five minutes ago that's why we all put Coates on no that's all right all right um first I just want to speak to and this is the first sheet Z1 and I've just blown up the survey portion of it um so as Bianca mentioned this is a you know very unusual shaped site it's you know almost um like a j or an L um and so overall the lot is um for the for the R4 Zone It's a larger lot than the Zone requires but the bulk of not the bulk but a large percentage of the area area is in this back leg whereas the house is in this front portion and this front portion is uh narrower than the R4 requires you know you can see the 6243 it's also takes a big step in as you go back 25 feet it comes in and at the point that it does this is only a 100 feet back and again for an R4 the minimum lot depth is supposed to to be 125 ft deep um so that you know so it's you know so that was the area where we're trying to work it's the existing house and we are keeping the existing footprint of the house we're keeping the existing Foundation first floor structure and we're adding on to it from there um but just you know and to go back to you know because one of the one of the variants is this rear yard setback and I had a conversation with Kathy jacks before you know when she was the you know the reviewing officer and we we had a disagreement on whether that was a rear yard setback or not but uh you know Kathy Kathy makes the final determination so she said it is but I me I know in other towns they've said no the main one is the rear one and this is this they looked at as a side u a sidey yard setback so um so but just an overall description of the house you know but Bianca gave you a pretty good summary but to the front of the existing house we are adding a you know a front porch along the side along the front but the primary element is to add an enclosed onecar garage attached to the side of the house and as you can see from the photographs that were submitted with his zoning variants the existing house has lifted up numerous number of steps so when we created create the garage we also have to leave room within this within the garage to get up that five or six steps to get up to the house level so that you know end up making the garage because we were trying to keep things to a minimum but um you know the 12 by 20 is referenced in the zoning ordinance but in this case we had to add a you know another three feet or so in the back here so we could have that stairs to go up to this mud room which is you know a pretty narrow mud room it's about five feet so but the the rectangle here is the existing house and then we are adding on the back uh the family room is just a one-story portion and the kitchen has a portion of it has a bathroom over the top but some of it is also just a one-story portion with the roof sloping um it's not a big lot it's not a big house to be begin with that's why we you know we're working with that and respecting that and so we you know we're have three bedrooms upstairs we trying to get four didn't work we do have a fourth on the main level um but so it's a three-bedroom house upstairs two baths uh in closet space and a stair um and then we get into the elevations so one of the things again when I mentioned before about that garage and being a little longer so what we did is we pulled it forward in order to add get that stair in there and not push things back into uh with the family room and trying to push everything farther back into the house and dealing with some creating some other variances we pulled the garage slightly forward which we have to ask for variance but it also it helps on the front elevation you know it helps give us some Dimension and so we're not creating the squared off box um so we were able to create a couple different roof lines and then the front porch also adds to the uh to the character of the house so that's just a brief overview of the house itself and so now I'm just going to talk about the Mr can you mark that as a one because that's colorized the the one on the screen the colorized version okay how do I do that I mean it's the same it's the same document you know this is just a PDF that the PDF has been submitted to the town through Katherine mie and okay we're going to mark this for A1 for clarification to show that you that's fine right that's the same the same same document you're looking at um now are you asking Meed to Market as A1 Mark want and send her a PDF with the color color I believe I believe they're saying they have it in color we just didn't have it in color so it looked to us yeah I mean Catherine the planning board had okay thank you then never mind all right thank you hi Catherine all right so um all right so the first variance we're asking for is the front yard variance and that's you know as I mentioned before we're pulling the porch out the porch does not require variant but the porch is coming out even farther than we're pulling the uh the house up but the the porch is less than the 6 feet um extension beyond the front yard setb back which is allowed so the front the porch will be a little bit F farther out and then as you go back a few feet then is the garage but the garage is 2 and 1/2 ft beyond the front yard set back line so 40 foot is required um the existing house is 41 and we are proposing 37.5 to the front of the garage um then side yard left there's no no request but that's an existing condition as you can see on the survey it's this 9.66 right there um that is what it is sidey yard right is currently 18.72% here um which is 13 a little bit over 13 ft so that's why when you take that away from the 18.72% five um and so we were asking for a 4.25 um variance at the you know at the front corner of the garage and then you can see as the line slopes back and once it gets back beyond the garage you know we were trying to keep you know the the fan family room and everything as much as we could in this area within the two sidey yard setbacks um so in the sidey yard combined is what it is so we were asking you know when we take the 5.75 and the 9.66 so we that totals and we're asking for the 5.6 variance there and then we get to the rear yard and you know again the rear yard deals with the existing condition you know just 100 feet back we have this 25 foot inset of the property and as I mentioned before Kathy and I had several you know conversations but she said no she was going to look at it as a rear yard so that's why I've listed it as the rear yard and um you know and and that's um so that's where we are for and that's the one story and portion of it is two St story with the with the bathroom for uh bath one above so that is the 21.5 ft variant again if we were look at it you know as a sidey yard we wouldn't even need the variants back there because we're at 13 and a half um overall building uh floor area is you know again the lot size is the 11,834 um so we are uh under the habitable floor area ratio we're at 28.9 but we are 198 ft over on the floor area itself and so that's why we're asking for a variance uh for the floor the floor area and then the other thing that ju Just for informational purposes is you can see there's an existing frame garage on the back which is there which is is going to stay you know it's existing there's not going to be any changes made to it um it's it's just it is you know it's an existing condition but uh that was something Kathy had had wanted pointed out when we were talking I'm sorry Kathy she had just wanted to point it out you know she said you know I said you know because I I had said you know so so that's since we were adding the other one car garage in front and was going to become um but it but that was structure was going to stay for you for various uses so that's you know that's a summary so again you know but it was it was in you know was working sort of it was a difficult site it is a difficult site I mean because it is it's you know narrow up front we're trying to add a onecar garage because it benefits everybody I mean it benefits the client obviously keeps the car out of the snow you know the municipality likes to have cars off the street um you know it likes and any new construction one car you know a minimum of a onecar garage is required so but just doing that and adding it you know we were limited you know to where we could at it and so once we do and so that just created some um variance issues with that so I mean that's the some some of my explanation thank you does anyone on the board have any questions for this application it's is there a house to the right of this or no it's to the right no oh it's empty they they own a double lot they do so the house is on one side and the the H the property next to this is vacant oh it's just like wooded backyard area and he gave it his Blessing he was fine with it that was that was the neighborhood who said he's all in favor of what did just the only question you know he pointed out we're going to end up moving this fence right here he just said you know when you do the work just move that fence and get it on the property line so that was his only comment yes please Mr Ambert you did a good job of explaining the hardships that you have with the site with is it your opinion as an architect that in the event this variance was granted by the board is consistent with the municipal land uses purposes Municipal anduse laws purposes yes right and that if it was granted it wouldn't be a sub the deviation wouldn't substantially outweigh the de benefit it would be beneficial help thank you very much are there any further questions from the board on this application any questions from the public on this question on this application would anyone in the public like to make a statement on this application would anyone on the board like to make a statement about this application yeah I just say it was a good job and looks like there's a room for a pool in the back and it looks like you already have a pool house you'll be invited would anyone like to make a motion I'll make a motion to approve this application I'll second motion by Mr nardone second by Mr Beer Mr Nardo yes Mr Beer yes Miss con votes yes Mr Arron yes Miss F yes motion passes thank you congratulations all right thank you very much Happy Holidays Miss Conan please call the next application block 4205 lot 3 13 Spalding Drive application number 20234 6- VV Mahir shof applicant seeks approval for an addition porch and rear Pao in violation of the following sections 17099 C2 front yard setback 40t required 35.04.04 right side yard setback 10 ft required 5.33 ft proposed 4.67 ft variant requested 17087 l1d front side yard Corner yard setback 35 ft required 26.97 ft proposed 8.03 ft variance requested 17- 87 C cc4 habitable floor ratio 30% allowed 3419 per proposed 4 n% variance requested Mr shot I want to make sure I'm pronouncing it correctly do you uh do you swear or affirm that all the statements you make to the board this evening will be true accurate and complete yes please consider yourself under oath thank you is there you got I AR you got another witness correct yeah would you state your name sir for me yes Roger Winkle and I'm uh architect in the state of New Jersey which with me do you swear or affirm that all the statements you're going to make to the board this evening will be true accurate and complete I do please consider yourself under oath and would you state your qualifications at the board please um yes um I received my architectural license in state of New Jersey in 1981 I went into practice for myself in 1984 I've testified before U maybe 30 different boards in the state of New Jersey I did testify here in Livingston but it was more than 10 years ago so and your license and my license is current standing thank you does anyone have any questions or objections there being no objections we can accept you as an expert in the field of architecture okay um would you um I'm not sure if if u i I can go first and then whatever you would prefer okay and I would like to hand out one more exhibit which is not in your package thank you it's okay then we'll mark that as A1 it's that is basically a copy of the showing the existing house on the property okay get that just before we get started uh Jackie it says it's additions porch and rear patio but it looks like it's a new house I'm confused this a new house yes we yeah we are proposing a a new house on this property The Narrative is a little messed up then yeah um we got the home in July um we currently reside in Jersey City um I have yeah your question Mr winkl for the purpose of the record A1 is a document which appears to be a survey of the property by ktj Associates LLC that's dated June 29 2023 is that ACC that is correct and that accurately depicts what the proposed what the property looks like and the proposed development of the property is that correct that accurately uh shows the existing house on the property but it also um so those are all existing including the pvers yes yes okay and is there a difference between this document and the document that was submitted with the application that's noteworthy can we let's hold up for a second oh I'm sorry I didn't realize that this existing document was submitted previously it should already be in the packet that submitted let Jackie check before we go any further let's let's make sure what we're hearing is really what's been applied for your favors if I may mam chairman yes please thank you and here's one of the issues that we're confronted with because of the law and the land use law you applied for one addition but now you're applying for a new house am I understanding that correctly no this application is for a new house but the initial submission I thought was for an addition I thought maybe I'm incorrect but that's there was a previously approved plan uh approved by this board in um January 25th 2022 no but the but the application to vary or modify the provisions of the zoning ordinance it says additions porch and rear patio the the issue that we have is because you you need to publish that in a newspaper and you have to go out and tell everybody what you're going to do and advise the board what you're going to do when you shift from doing an addition to the purpose of the application being a new house I'm not com able that the that the notices and everything that's been going on are consistent it's not a criticism it's just a fair comment and my concern is that if we proceed with this application even if you were to be approved if the application submitted is substantially different now than what you were proposing and the notices didn't delineate that that that approval might not be effective unless I'm misunderstanding we're checking to see if we can our next meeting is December 12th it's it's soon so we want to see if you can re if about they're checking the notices to see if we can adjourn this to December 12th you you own this or is an LLC own no I own this um owning it for yourself yes we intend to build this for our own family uh to move in basically so unfortunately there isn't time for you to so the original notices were for an addition porch and rear patio and so we need yeah so we need you're going to have to file new notices to the public you won't be able to do that in time for the December meeting so we will have to adjourn this to our January meeting the reason that you can't comply with the notice requirements is that the notices have to be published in a newspaper The Star Ledger or the 10 days prior to the hearing date and the notices have to be transmitted to the property owners within 200 fet and anybody else who's entitled to a notice also 10 days prior so we now November 29th my experience with newspapers is you're going to need at least three days advanced notice right to get it in which you won't have um is is there any way we can because uh the thing is we were trying to get in for the next school year uh to construct the property no we understand time we understand we just we can't hear the app as you heard from our attorney we can't hear the application without without the proper notices and so I mean we will we can hear the application in January and we you know you see we try and operate very efficiently unfortunately we can't we can't do this before the January meeting and it's also to your benefit because if if this board hears it without the proper notices it's effectively a nullity I mean I think if they submit it tomorrow there's a chance it would get in before the 10day cut off you would have to get into into yeah my my experience I'm just going with the experience is so do you want to you're going to need some divine intervention to get those notices published I've been through this drill Jackie does the township have to review this again because it's an it's um yeah because it's a single family house and not an addition does it have to be reviewed Again by the by the yeah we can send that through the review process the the I think the issue that the board is contending now is whether or not he can get public notice through the Star Ledger so if you can get those notices in and notify my office um we can list it for the December 12th meeting see how that goes um if you're were able to get those notices in what when does it have to be published it has to be published tomorrow you have to notify the Star Ledger tonight or in the morning because it have to be published it would have to be published by December 2nd right yes it's 10 days before not including the date of the hearing it has to be published by Friday latest and the notice has to be accurate about the one family and you have to also send out the notices certified mail to all the people that are people or businesses that are entitled to do it under the uh right you have the same list and all that yeah so if you can if you can get the public if you can get the notice published in the newspaper we'll list you for the December 12th hearing and then as Miss holla said if you notify her office and then you have you know you have the rest of the week to get the notices to the public to your NE to the neighbors out but if not you it'll need to be adjourned to the January meeting but we can give you that flexibility and and as Mr JMA said hopefully you can get it published by the by the ster and just a cautionary note some newspapers now do not publish on a Saturday in other words they go to it I I know The Ledger is in a transition I don't know where they are but there are newspapers that do not publish on Saturdays now don't ask me why I just um do I need to submit anything again for the application itself check did he submit plans for a new house or for a renovation I'm sorry Mr nardon the plans were submitted as an addition I'll speak with the um zoning officer tomorrow to see if the denial letter can be updated okay but there's a tole survey that was submitted um but it was submitted just as an addition who filled out all the paperwork uh I did you did you filled out all the paperwork yeah and you wrote addition yeah um I mean I was going based off the previous application that was submitted which was to add a new second layer to the house I'm going to make a very strong recommendation here consult with councel and let Council assist you in getting the paperwork squared away so you don't find yourself in this position in December or January okay I take that trust him trust me on that there have been people that come before this board that we have turned away two and three times because they don't want to hire or pay for an attorney to help them and you keep coming back until the paperwork is correct no I'll definitely cons take that consideration um yeah it's not it's not that we busting your chops just we got to follow the law so Mr nardone and the board just I think the applicant on good faith because he has a resolution of approval back in 2021 and he made some amendments to his plan so he was going based on and he was going for I went based of that uh but the board did approve and granted the a list of erences back in 2021 right okay so we will adjourn this for now until the December meeting and you will be in contact with Miss Hollis and Miss Madre and let us and then we'll either see in December or January okay okay do you understand what needs to be done yeah yeah I understand just you understand if I go ahead please the the adjournment the carry to the December meeting is subject to the notices is not without further notice you understand that yeah thank you very much and there's a chance Miss Hollis that depending on what the zoning Officer says they may have to go be pushed to the January meeting anyway yes um M house yeah so you need to be in contact with Miss holl and Miss Madre tomorrow okay I I okay thank you and sorry about that thank you we're sorry we could help you okay meeting adjourned yes I just wanted to ask a quick question like this one and maybe other applications that come in early December seeking like the D variances we would need five people that are also staying on into the new year that would then like vote on the resolution right so that would be because like we're gonna have some turnover right that is a dynamic that you're going to have to look at because whoever sits for the meeting whoever doesn't if they don't I don't know what your Dynamic is in terms of reappointments but you would have to if you're not here you got to read the transcript if you continue on to the following year right but we can have them read the transcripts if we're in that position okay okay you did true okay okay so um let's adjourn this meeting thank you okay