##VIDEO ID:Q7zrvd6C07Q## e e e T of Edison Zoning Board of adjustment special meeting of January 28 2025 is now in session adequate notice of this meeting as required by the open public meetings Act of 1975 has been provided by the annual notice published in the home news and Tribune on December 13 2024 as posted in the main lobby of Municipal complex on December 18th 20124 please join me a pledge allegiance to the flag flag United States of America to the rep for it stands one nation indivisible liy andice mam secretary roll call please Mr oera Mr bno here Miss Shaw here Mr aat here Mr chabra here Mr Patel here Mr sadaha here Vice chair o' Gorman here and chairman Kumba here thank you uh Madam Secretary minutes for consideration January 21 2025 minutes of approval what's the board's pleasure I can make a motion to approve the minutes of the meeting for January 21st second2 motion made by Vice chairman o' Gorman seconded by Mr sedada roll call please Mr chabra yes the motion Mr pel yes to the motion Mr sadada yes to the motion Vice chair o Gorman yes andman yes on the motion thank you Madam Secretary good evening ladies and gentlemen this is a special meeting of the Edis Township Zoning Board of adjustment this board is composed of Edison Township residents appointed by the municipal Council who volunteer their time and service to the board The Muse Law requires that members successfully compl complete a land use training course administered by the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs this board also holds in-house training conducted by our board professionals the zoning board abides by the provision of the mpal land use law in addition to our board's bylaws the zoning board is a qu quasi judicial land use board which differs from the township planning board under the municipal land use law board members are required to be impartial and are not allowed to discuss any case prior to be considered at a hearing all applicants will have the opportunity to present their case before the board along with the opportunity for board members board professionals to question the applicant and their Witnesses at the conclusion of the applicant's presentation of their case the case will be open to the public residents with 200 feet within 200 feet of the subject property will be heard followed by residents from outside of 200 feet all residents will be sworn in they'll provide their name and address and they'll be given six minutes to comment on the application being considered without the opportunity for a rebuttal residents may ask questions of the applicant the appin professionals and board professionals the board requests that these questions are asked prior to any commentary being made on the application once a commentary Begins the resident's timer will begin the applicant will be allowed the opportunity for cross- examination of their Witnesses under the law the chair is allowed to stop any commentary which is repetitive for an attempt to fill Buster the board further the chair is allowed to stop any commentary that is irrelevant to the case are prohibited from the board's consideration once public portion is closed all public comments are ended unless new testimony is presented by the applicant following the closure of the public portion the applicant will have the right of summation on their application following summation the casee will go to the board for a decision this procedure has been followed by the board and is similar to procedures followed by Boards of adjustment Statewide the municipal land use Law requires a board to engage in a balancing act and is not required to strictly apply Township ordinances zoning plan or master plan as a board of adjustment variances are granted when appropriately necessary following all legal considerations as has been the case with prior boards this board will see where we at if we were still in session around 10:30 p.m. I ask that all applicants professionals and res presid show respect to each other and be civil throughout all proceedings I ask that you withhold Applause booing or inter interrupting of anyone while they are speaking the chair will not tolerate any Outburst by applicants professionals or the public further since most cases are being recorded by a court reporter I ask the speakers do not speak over one another Madam Secretary first case on the agenda please case number z22 2024 congregation aath isal 1587 LOL Highway applicant is seeking bulk and use variances to construct a one-story addition to the existing synagogue for a new Sanctuary with Lobby standards have not been met in accordance with the master plan front yard setback required is 30 feet proposed is 10t Max lot width required is 100 ft proposed is 75 Max F required is25 proposed is 043 affected property is located in the GB Zone designated as block number 81 Lot number 1.01 on the Edison Township tax map all noticing paperwork is in order good evening Mr chairman and board members uh Warren fin I'm the attorney on behalf of the synagogue and um you might hear reference to the synagogue as ay which is the way is commonly referred to as the community um I think most of the notice has been um a uh noted I would just note that the uh the plan is they're seeking approval of a preliminary and final site plan to allow the construction of a one-story 5,572 square foot addition to the existing synagogue which would include a new sanctuary and Lobby so um we have all our professionals here um and um this a growing congregation and uh I would first like to present before the professionals the rabbi of the synagogue Rabbi Galia jaffi who's going to testify first and lay out the basics uh basic facts of the application which is that this is a growing congregation consisting of approximately I believe it's 51 full members and 23 uh associate members and uh the rabbi will leave it to him to give you the details but he'll testify considering the typical attendance so that he can explain to the uh board that the synagogue that ay is a is a walking synagogue that since a is an Orthodox Jewish synagogue and as the rabbi will explain driving is strictly forbidden on The Jewish Sabbath and Jewish holidays just about everyone walks to synagogue since they can't drive in order to attend services so uh I would ask without further delay the that Rabbi jaffy come up please Mr fr you can use the table over here um you can get comfortable use the the table there's there's an extra microphone there absolutely thank you very much Rabbi you could you could join them at the table as well Rabbi would you raise your right hand do you solemnly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth to help you back I promise to tell the truth okay and state your full name for the record please Galia jaffy if I may proceed without objection thank you uh Rabbi how long have you been the uh Rabbi of the synagogue I've had the privilege of serving as the rabbi since 2008 and do you know how long the AY has been operating at the current site uh since OG has been at the current site since the Year 2006 and um what are the typical activities uh that occur at ay we have prayer services we have learning sessions and we have occasional social events for our members and what happens what what do you mean if you could just explain to the board what the learning sessions means classes dealing with Jewish texts that are thousands of years old we have about usually 10 to 15 people who attend these um classes okay and what's the uh approximate membership of the synagogue I believe the current membership is 51 full-time members and 23 associate members and if you could please describe for the board uh the various prayer Gatherings that occur at the synagogue during the week and what the uh usual attendance es on our Sunday morning prayer services we have approximately 15 people who come on a Sunday morning they start at 8:30 last about 1 hour and then on Sunday afternoon around Twilight time we have afternoon and evening prayer services together again approximately 15 people come to those as well during the week we have our morning prayer service at 6:30 Monday through Friday L you less than one hour and then this time of year we have an evening service at 8:30 which lasts about 15 minutes and these again have approximately uh 15 people in attendance okay what about attendance on the uh on the Jewish sabbath the Sabbath begins Friday at sundown most people live within walking distance of our synagogue those who live a little bit farther will drive Park their cars in the um nine parking spots that are there we've always had sufficient parking and then we pray for about one hour on Friday uh afternoon and then in the morning as was mentioned it's an Orthodox Jewish synagogue where any nobody nobody uh drives every walks we have anywhere between 40 to 75 people at our main prayer service which is is 9:00 we have about uh 15 to 20 people who come to our early morning service which is at 6:45 a.m. and then in the afternoon people come back again everybody walks nobody's driving on the Sabbath and we have about 15 to 20 people for afternoon evening services and then after the Sabbath is over on a Saturday night people either walk or or drive home so uh your testimony is that there are sufficient parking spots with the with the current nine spots uh when people come for the uh relatively fewer amount of people who drive to the synagogue on uh Friday afternoon before the Sabbath begins yes there there's enough parking spots as I mention because the people who who um live close by will walk to the synagogue and we Mo a little bit farther away we'll we'll drive there but there's always been adequate parking with the nine spots and the new plan which is calling for 11 parking spots we assume that'll be the the same uh status quo there'll be adequate parking for the number of people attending the services okay and is it pretty much the same situation with the Jewish holidays Jewish holidays follow the exact same model as the Sabbath where the it's strictly forbidden to to operate in a drive in a car so the same model where people will either walk or will drive to the synagogue before the Sabbath holiday begins and then leave their cars there in the parking lot and then drive home afterwards okay and what a about um Russ shur which are known to be days where possibly more people uh attend Services is it still does that affect the parking situation at all those are large um Services if they're not parking on the actual U parking lot they might be on the street parking but do more people would you say somewhat more people more people do come on on rash and Y which driving more people as far as driving it's probably slightly higher okay uh are there any operations on the property during the week no there's no schools in our synagogue it's for services I mentioned uh in the morning and at the nighttime and um okay and that's basically it are there any questions for the rabbi does board have any questions for the rabbi Mr chairman Vice chairman so um you don't have any learning sessions during the week the learning sessions there's no classes there at two nights a week we have the 10 to 15 people who stay for our evening prayers at the 8:30 we have a class for them on Monday nights and Wednesday nights what are the social events I'm glad you asked we have um like chopped you know like the cooking competition we did that once we did um a wine tasting uh event it's just things for people to get to together and socialized they're not really religious in nature but just it's a place to create commanderie are those do those occur on the uh on the Sabbath no these These are these are weekday events and what's the usual tendance those kind of events no we can get excess of 30 people sometimes for that do they drive or do they walk depends how close they live to the synagogue thank you any other questions for the rabbi okay thank you very much R thank you thank you Rabbi uh so that being concluded I would Now call uh Adnan Khan the uh engineer to uh review the plans you allly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth to help you God I do and state your full name for the record Adan Khan ADN k m Khan you've appeared before us prior but if you just please provide the board with a brief summary of your background and qualifications sure I have a bachelor's degree in civil engineering master's degree in construction management from NGIT professional engineer in multiple States testified in front of federal court Superior Court hundreds of boards throughout New Jersey and in front of this board uh in the past great and all my licenses are current excellent thank you so much we'll uh we accept you you may proceed thank you uh thank you Mr chairman uh Mr KH if you could describe the general plan to the uh the board wants to see the plan should should I bring the easel here so if you like you could take the easel if you want to set it up over there and then also excuse me just bring the microphone with you Mr KH just for the record uh those are the same plans that were already previously submitted with the application correct that is correct okay okay as you heard from the rby uh it's existing synagogue and we are proposing an addition to the existing synagogue the property is located in GB General business district uh there are some bulk requirements uh some of them are pre-existing some variances that uh are listed on the application and there are some new variances that will be uh requested by the applicant uh I'm going to quickly go over those variances but of course we have Mr chedwick here to to present his planning testimony uh the pre-existing uh variances as the lot width uh existing is 100 ft required and VR 75 ft this is the existing lot configuration which uh we won't be able to change because that's the large size that is available uh the other pre-existing variance is the front yard for the principal building 30 ft is required the existing synagogue is a 10 ft and we are proposing the same setback for the addition as well as keeping the existing um building uh the new variances will be the rear yard uh variance that we are seeking 15 ft is required and uh sorry 25 ft is required and we are proposing 20.65% is required we are at 43 38% so that's a variance we require and uh the f25 is allowed and V are at43 so those are the variances uh that we are requesting in addition uh we are requesting a parking variance based on the uh size of the addition in the existing synagogue the requirement uh for the parking based on the land use requirement of the in Township uh we need uh 52 parking spaces uh let's see let me just confirm that uh 50 spaces and we are proposing uh 11 spaces and I'm going to go over once I go to the existing condition as to what is existing and how we are proposing the new parking layout so that is in essence and there are some U design wavers design deviations of minor nature that we are seeking and of course Mr chadrick is here to go over those [Applause] uh existing site there's an existing building to the east uh Eastern property first of all the the the lot uh there are two lots and the lot is a corner lot at the intersection of Lincoln Highway and Campell Avenue the existing synagogue is on the Southeastern section uh of the lot fronting with what I counted is like s to eight parking spaces but Rabbi mentioned nine spaces there are space that you can park nine cars but they are all substandard parking spaces uh they are not uh designated at the proper Dimensions that exist and then we have a big or a long depressed curve along Campbell Avenue that provides direct access to all these eight or nine parking spaces in front of the building and Campbell Avenue is very close to the intersection so in my opinion it's not a very CF condition that currently exist at the property because that as soon as you turn from Lincoln Highway in order to enter the parking you have to make immediate ride so what we are proposing is we are keeping the existing building and adding an addition and doing so we are making that vehicle circulation and vehicle movement more more efficient and much safer we moved the driveway from right at the intersection we moved it all the way to the other end of the parking lot which is the Northern end so the entire depress curb in the front will be all constructed as a full height so the entrance is like if anybody's entering the parking lot they have to drive uh about 3 400 ft before they can enter into the driveway so we are making it much safer based on this proposed layout uh again the requirement as d by explain in his testimony the need and how many people uses in different Fair Services uh I in in in our opinion the 11 spaces is more than what currently exists at the property and they will serve the community well based on their operations at the facility what we are also proposing is we are proposing two handicap spaces when accessible handicap spaces currently there is no designated handicap space at the property so we are complying with the federal requirement to provide two handicap accessible and then we have nine spaces uh the addition uh of the building if and our architect will go over in detail we are keeping the existing building and adding to the uh building towards West and North uh however as I mentioned there are variances uh the 10 ft requirement for the front yard uh we we are that's an existing uh variance so we are keeping in line the addition is in line with the existing building so we are not accting that uh variance uh the sidey yard is uh the pinch point where it is right next to the building to the east so uh that is a a variance that we are seeking uh in addition to these improvements we are also proposing a very comprehensive Landscaping plan actually before I go to Landscaping I want to explain like uh currently the property doesn't have any stor Water Management and property is very flat so any rain event that happens it just surface runoff either toward the property to the North or towards Campbell Street and ultimately to the drainage system on Campbell street so it's UND detained runoff what we are proposing as part of this project is we are proposing a uh detention Basin underground DET infiltration Basin in compliance with the township requirement and the DP requirements what this detention is going to do it's going to capture all the roof runoff from the existing building and the proposed building and dver all that roof runoff into the infiltration Basin which will help the uh infiltration of the groundwater and U I mean infiltration into the soils and replenish the ground water uh the same thing we are proposing some um inlets that will capture the runoff from the paved area into the system so all the Run outs that will be generated on site will be handled on site through this infiltration or stor water system uh uh so that's our storm water that we are proposing as I mentioned we are proposing Landscaping lighting improvements as well uh if you uh check the plans we are proposing Shar trees along Campbell Avenue and uh one share along Lincoln Highway in addition we have a uh combination of uh deedu and evergreen trees throughout the site as well as some shops along the uh building along the addition of the new building as a foundation Landscaping in addition we are proposing lighting uh lighting design all these light fixtures are LED type light fixtures downward throw fully cut off in compliance with the township ordinance and we are meeting the requirements for the lighting as uh what else if I miss anything garbage we are also proposing a trash enclosure uh again the garbage will be on the day of collection it will be either put to the curb where the garbage truck will come and pick it up and uh that's how the garbage will be handled from the side Mr chairman Mr B I have a question the fencing can you just show the limits of the fencing on the property the in foot fence yes we are showing the OT show us show where it is on the okay okay uh we are showing a proport uh propos 8ot high fence along the Eastern property line and along uh the northern property line up to the front yard where where does it start in the bottom it starts in the bottom from at the pinch Point actually it starts behind the Edition it runs through uh the East along Eastern property line and it ends up here and what's to the right of the property line right the where your finger is what's there there's an existing structure existing building what kind of building it what's use there uh it's a it's a retail commercial building yes yeah right thank you Mr chairman it's not a residential yes it's always retail resident retail commercial building so that's what the fences and uh trash enclosure I talked about it Landscaping uh again this driveway that we are proposing along cample will be a two-way full access in and out so it will give us full access and it's uh much safer than what currently exist at the site that's what I have for now I'll take the any questions okay so we'll go to the board and see if they any questions for Mr con Mr chairman if I could just add something absolutely Mr gave to M rugiero and she was leaving for M sha uh I sent AB budding letters at the end of November November 29th to the three AB budding neighbors and didn't hear back from any of them okay Michelle and Mr Khan may I just ask you have you had the opportunity to review the October 28th uh 2024 report from DNR uh engineering yes I did okay and is the applicant able to comply with the U with the report yes we can yes we will thank you Mr bar I would agree with the uh applicant Engineers assessment that the relocating the uh the driveway access improves the safety at that intersection he has touched on a number of the comments and Mr Carly's letter is part of his testimony uh there's a few minor uh engineering items that he's agreed to provide so uh hearing that we have no exception excellent Mr M go the M planning report yeah Mr chairman they spoke about a few of the things on my report but are you agreeing to all my comments is that what you're saying yes sir all right so that I asked for an irrigation system so the Landscaping survives uh I have to check with that with the that's why I'm asking the question so you have to decide that you want to go through one at a time would that be easier yes all right so the first one you need to provide the outside agencies I'm sure you'll do that any exemptions um you already spoke with B about the what the operation is the parking um number of congregants you already addressed that um we talked about the buffer the irrigation system we as that you do that to M maintain the Landscaping so it doesn't die off it kind of grows and you take care of it so that's something you need to provide if that's the case do you agree to that or okay with the system yes yes that's the U the tree calculations uh I have no more need to have additional trees on the property but the ordinance is specific on what you have to apply for and then and then the board grants you waiver or whatever the case may be so that is going to have to be addressed on the plan yes that whatever is required I think you're very close to it now but you have to provide the calculations um pipeline buffering um are you doing any digging on site because if you are you have to provide the letters of the pipeline buffering uh uh companies that you're not you're not digging within 75 ft of a high pressure Main and there are high pressure Mains along um Route 27 so you have to make sure they're not 75 pounds or greater all right so that's something you have to agree to yes we will in just to let you know like all our new utilities are from Campell Avenue we are not going towards a so they're not they're not considered high pressure but you still have to provide the letters so you have to apply for the letters will the secretary will give you the addresses and they send you they'll send you report back and there's no high pressure means and that's a condition of approval we'll come live that's by ordinance okay um and then I know you spoke about um the lighting I asked it to be at a residential scale and you said they're going to be low they're they're not going to bother anybody in the neighborhood to just a they are full cut off downward throw all these light fixtures yes and then he signage you propose any signage to the property not at this time nothing on the facade just the reason why I ask is you should do it now because that way if it's all part of your site plan approval so if you come down later and you want to put something on you may have to go back before the board sign I didn't hear what he said but what he said Mr fr you bring the microphone closer to you the um speaking to Mr Kang who's who's the co-president of the synagogue so um I think you're allowed 10% of the front facade so if you testify that the sign will be less than that 10% area then you're fine but it's on the record then you're allowed to do it at the down the road uh sorry if I may yeah we we did we actually we do provide a sign schedule and we are proposing signs but they are all conforming to the zoning requir I want yes thank you Mr chairman thank you Mr KH okay so now go to the board if the board has any questions from Mr fr Mr chairman Vice chairman what was the issue on the loading at the facility was that addressed uh as far as um any supplies and things correct yeah I mean it's a synagogue so the loading or the vehicles the maximum Vehicles you can expect is like a FedEx truck or UPS type truck or delivery Vans if they are catering any food so we're not expecting any big tractor trailers or deliveries like that and in the parking area we have enough room where these Vans uh delivery Vans or box trucks can easily come and park on the available space and deliver whenever they need to yeah and then Mr Khan the um garbage collection recycling collection it'll just be a regular can you're not proposing a dumpster or any sorts no there will be small dumpsters depending upon how much uh has been uh generated but it can be like it can be a 1 cubic yard uh Bin with the wheels on so they are easy to maneuver by one person okay and then they'll be stored inside yeah they are all in a trash enclosure with a vinyl fence arounded okay perfect Mr Bell we're good with that all right you're happy I'm happy excellent all right any other questions Mr Khan okay see none thank you very much thank you thank you uh I would then ask uh call Anthony guzo uh the architect raise your right hand do you Solly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth help you God yes I do and please State your full name for the record yes Anthony guzo The Firm of guzo Architects 608 Ridge Road Linhurst New Jersey Mr guzo if you could please provide the board with a summary of your background and qualifications please yes I have a 5-year bachelor's degree from New Jersey Institute of Technology um currently uh a member of the AIA and National Council NCB um I'm been practicing architecture for over 25 years my license is in good standing and I also hold my license uh in New Jersey I have testified before this board before okay license are current in good standing yes they are all right we'll accept you it must be NJIT night we're going to notify the Alumni Association alumni so good thank you Mr chairman uh Mr guzo you could please present a basic outline of the architecture aspect of this uh application sure I'm just going to be putting up our exhibits which uh were submitted to the board um so uh our drawing number P1 dated 1217 2024 it's it's our architectural floor plan uh just to give you a little oversight of the existing building I know we had some site testimony but the existing uh building on site is uh you know approximately about uh 35 ft uh 38 ft by 75 it's an existing masonry building not very tall about 14 feet or so um and that is currently the location um that that houses the congregation so we had that as a starting point there so as we were laying this out we were really just trying to add the spaces so uh they can function as is but then also leave themselves some room to grow so that existing building is a 2400 square foot building so what we're looking to do here is just add uh approximately about 5,000 square feet uh adding a true Sanctuary space space which they don't truly have now so we're looking to have just a space with some high ceilings approximately 2 ,000 Square ft uh but also add U some functional space uh for them so again uh bringing the building up to code we provided um handicap accessible men and women's toilets uh we have a kitchen we have uh two multi-purpose uh smaller rooms uh that can serve for education or some other small functions and then the existing building will eventually be outfitted to a kidish space which is um an overflow space after service where they get together and uh so that that will be converting the old space to that so uh with that being said the sanctuary space will uh be set back off of uh Lincoln Highway so on the side of cble um so I I think that we were very trying to be very sensitive to the residential area that we were there um and that is reflected in the facade elevations um as we kind of wrap ourselves around we have a couple of points of access but really our main lobby access is off of Campbell which is in the central part of the space and not towards the rear or residential um so basically everyone walking um to this location from different directions will be kind of accessing in the middle of the building along Campbell uh just to kind of move on to our exterior elevations um I also brought with me I'm not sure if the board has this um our rendering which is rn11 which really just gives a good visual depiction of the building itself uh what we are trying to do on all elevations was kind of break this up into a little bit smaller portions uh we tried to use subtle materials uh we have a light stone that is the majority of the spaces the sanctuary space the corner element that we have here that has some angled uh roof lines um and then inserted in between which is just a a a softer uh beige material which is um almost like a Sandstone it's like a cast stone uh so we're just used a variety of different materials and different building elements to just give some interest along the facade uh the the building itself actually kind of follows the uh slight Bend or angle that's in Campbell uh so we think that along with some of the different varied elements along there become a very interesting building and hope to U kind of clean up that space on the corner um and then give the building some presence there with uh that corner white element with the angled roof and then just a little bit more subtle elevation as we approach down Campbell do you want to mention anything about some of the modifications that were made to the plan uh yes um you know through some of the tech techncal review that we did have uh you know we kind of took away some of the things uh comments there and actually reduced the building size so what we did is we were within 10 feet as a as a side yard or front yard setback off of Campbell um that was increased to 15 so that reduced some of our square footage but I think all in all it was um a good reduction of square footage here I think from the visual presence and the visibility uh around that corner for vehicular traffic but also having the building set back with a little bit more of a landscape uh buffer in between that I think that's a nice setting for the building so I think there was um you know some advantages by reducing the building during our technical Review Committee are there any questions for uh Mr guzo have any questions Mr guzo Mr chairman Vice chairman and the uh pel planning s's report the architect needs to provide a clearer occupancy calculations uh yes we will provide that um it will be uh based on building code we uh Ed some of that already uh in our plumbing calculations that we we did for this facility but uh we will provide that um if needed well it's based on the parking that's that's the issue from the report have you seen us uh yes yes um I know that there's a square footage requirement that that translates back into that and uh I don't not aware if it's directly related to occupancy Mr chairman maybe I could help Mr yeah my report is is a reflection of it um uh the vice chairman is correct it's it's calculated by the number of people in the facility um and that's why I guess when the planner gets up he'll talk about the the number of people that walk to to services and that's that's um that'll be be part of the testimony that we need the number so we can lock in a number of people that are maximum at that facility so they once they outgrow that they you know it's like a it's a building code thing it's not a zoning issue but there'll be a maximum number of people that can be uh permitted in the building any one time so there's like two issues there one's for parking but one's to figure what the maximum number is as well okay does that help a little bit because yes yes thank you you'll comply with I I will comply with that yes yeah his his is the build side the parking is the variant side that has to come from the from the planning test planner testimony all right thank you Mr chair so just to clarify will the parking be confined to the site and when it's overloaded uh they will park in the street during your holidays but during normal week uh during course of a normal week all the parking will be on site I believe that's what the uh that's what the rabbi testified too um if there is some small overflow they would park on the street but I don't think they've uh they also still might look into something like I've suggested to them speaking to the uh par shopping center across the street for like on weekends or evenings for overflow parking you know there's that uh there's that mini mall over there right across the street yes okay do you use that currently use that now no but I've suggested to the to the um to the board that they reach out to them to see if they can make some kind of provision along those lines for especially as was mentioned when they grow hopefully should we hear the testimony first I think he asked the question too soon mrot let them provide the testimony on their walkers on Sabbath because they don't drive and they don't need the parking and there's enough parking during the week when the rabbi and has to do whatever business so that's that's what we did at TRC so the board still here has to hear that testimony right well the rabbi testified that uh I think on The Jewish Sabbath that there was it 50 to 75 Rabbi people that walk come and then so out of those people they're about they're usually the park that the parking is sufficient and that's but the planner the planner needs to put that testimony on the record not to interrupt you but okay the professional has to do that so let's get to him and Mr CH is next thank you thank you thank you Mr guzo Mr yeah what is the hours of the operation the hours of operation yeah well it depends on uh the rabbi testified that during the week there is a prayer gathering on the mornings at approximately 6:30 in the morning and on Sundays at 8:30 in the morning and then on the Jewish sabbath when people are walking there's a 6:45 in the morning session and also uh a later one at uh what at at nine o'clock and then there's also one about an hour before Sundown and then at sundown on the duer Sabbath um which people are also walking to since they're not allowed to drive okay and then nobody lives on the site nobody what nobody lives on the site no there nobody lives on the site and as the rabbi testified there's no school there or any other activity during the week except for educational uh activities a couple of nights a week right right right and then you have a full-fledged kitchen over there excuse me kitchen there you cook food over there uh well I think there's a small current kitchen but the the plan calls uh I would have to ask the rabbi he's more familiar with the plans or maybe we could ask Mr kolang to step up he's the president if you want to uh swear him in you could approach sir microphone's over there uh as part of hold on pleas sorry raise your right hand do solemnly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth so help you God yes I and state your phone name for the record if you want to hold a microphone Jay Kang I'm sorry j I'm co-president of uh Israel c l n g okay and uh Mr Kang you've been asked about the uh what the kitchen situation is both currently and as per the plan so if you could kindly uh respond to the board member's question currently we we really have no kitchen we have a space that we use for we have refrigerators we have no oven no appliances other than a refrigerator and we we really that's why we're building to uh to you know provide more space uh we plan on in the new building having a warming kitchen basically uh which will have you the ability to warm and store food and also have uh space to prepare which we don't have right now really um but there's not going to be an elaborate kitchen at all if that answers a question oh uh and we do not cook on the Sabbath uh which is Sun you know from sun down the previous day through Sundown the following day there is no cooking it's that's why it's a warming kitchen so we can keep things warm we prepare them before the holiday or the Sabbath and then we serve it on on the Sabbath and the best we can do is warm warm that food and then that is the schedule even on the holidays as well right the holidays are are exactly like the the trend during the practice during the Sabbath holidays it's the same restrictions okay thank you thank you Mr chairman Vice chairman what what what appliances are in a warming kitchen what is a warming kitchen do you want to have the rabbi address that maybe it's best to have the rabbi address that question because it's uh he's more familiar to I think he'd be better able to describe uh the answer to that RAB there's a microphone on the table right over there you go hello here we go a warming kitchen has a warming drawer it's approximately I'm 6 feet tall it's about as tall as I am it has different slots so we put in items like a potato coule we put in there items like uh if you know what CHT is it's very delicious and it's the feet that's prepared before the Sabbath begins we ins there it maintains the temperature about 200° and then we take it out so we have hot food to eat after our prayer services are done thank thank you all right any other questions from the board seeing none thank you Mr F okay thank you Mr kolang so I would call uh the planner John Chadwick yeah I'll take this one I'll take the other one Mr Chadwick if You' raise your right hand do you solemnly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth to help you God yes I do and State your full name for the record sir name is John Chadwick CH h a d w i c k and Mr Chadwick I know you've appeared prior to this before this board if you could just please give a brief summary of your background qualifications uh yes I have uh my license is in good standing uh and I've been practicing uh providing professional planning services to private individ private companies or entities and municipalities for quite some time technical term yes okay we'll accept you thank you Mr Chad Mr MCD and I have probably in a tie uh Mr Chadwick if you could please uh explain the positive and negative criteria to the board and if he could also go into the parking issue which was uh couple of the board members have asked about yeah the the planning question of course is is over is the where there is enough parking and the you've had testimony all evening now on how this uh congregation operates there's nobody driving to the facility when the main Services take place during the week there is a small portion of the uh membership that come and they could drive there or walk there depending on their location my assessment of this having seen the operation because they're there now and having dealt with similar congregations that are Orthodox that are absolute prohibit Pro prohibiting driving or driving a car on the Sabbath uh I think there's more than adequate parking and it goes to the rabbis testimony of how many people attend these small sessions whatever their purpose might be during the week um it's already been stated that the number of the congregation live close and will walk anyway and there's talking about somewhere around 15 people so even with that the parking is more than adequate but come back to the come back to the uh proposal it's a old tired building it's not adequate for their needs now and it's been demonstrated through the architect to be vastly improved uh Street appearance and Campell Street roadside as well uh that goes to this is inherently beneficial you've heard that term night after night uh we don't have to prove any positive benefits with by the nature of what we are we advance the purposes of the municipal land use law what you go to is is there's something in this application that outweighs the public benefits that are derived I see positive benefit on all the major categories the appearance of the building clearly is much much much more attractive than what is current it'll result in correcting a dangerous situation where the parking is currently and backing out into Campbell Street right at the intersection that'll be eliminated there's no storm water management whatsoever at the site and there will be and the overall site itself in terms of both Landscaping and fencing will be uh an extremely attractive site so my judgment when you weigh the negatives and the positives it's all positive you go through other we have other variances Mo some are pre-existing uh the coverage variance is to allow for the expansion but the site clearly can accommodate it and all the other variances that are associated with it either are Nal elble or existing I don't believe there's anything that is uh overwhelming to this project and the S sight is that by judgment it meets the standards of the municipal land use law meets the standards outlined under the uh lead case which is the secet case on inherently beneficial use and it warrants your approval does board have any questions from Mr Chadwick is now a time to bring up the over overflow parking that Mr a brought up well the the the Overflow I mean any of the churches synagogues uh temples and town and the high holidays it it's an overflow no matter where you are is there available overflow parking in the vicinity of this facility yes there is have they made concrete AR Arrangements no they haven't because they haven't had the Overflow at this juncture now would they in the future will they expanded facility your guess is as good as mine but the fact is there is area that can accommodate it not just on the streets and with you know within close proximity not some distance away yeah also points out excuse me that the high holidays are only where all those people come it's only three days three days a year so during the week your general uh uh your services the parking will be mostly confined to the nine spots 11 spots that have on the park right the rabbi already testified that the nine that are currently there have been sufficient so certainly 11 at least for the foreseeable future uh with the board to Grant this uh application would would be sufficient okay I have no further questions chairman thank you Mr have any other questions Mr Chadwick see thank you very much welcome thank you Mr Chadwick you have any other Witnesses Council uh no other Witnesses U at this time I would when it's the appropriate time we have one person from the public who I would ask to testify okay well then that leads us right in so uh we will now go out to the public anyone within 200 feet of subject site wanted to be heard if you're within 200 feet of subject site you receive the notice of your certified mail seeing none will go outside of 200 feet anyone want from the public wanting to be heard okay uh I would ask Mr fres to step up you you can be at the podium sir sir you can go that microphone over there Jo if you would raise your right hand do youly swear or firms tell the whole truth nothing but the truth help you got yes I do and state your full name uh just pull the microphone closer State your full name and provide your address Joseph FR 56 Campbell Avenue I live uh Eight houses away from the synagogue roughly a 3 minute walk I'm one of the Walkers that you keep mentioning uh and then generally I walk 90% of the time even on weekdays uh unless it's really cold like last week and um I think it'd be a good addition to the neighborhood the current building is fairly dated um not that attractive and this addition would be an enhancement to the corner thank you f r i h great thank you very much sir anyone else with outside of to your feet W to be heard anyone else with outside of 200 feet want to be heard can I have a motion to close the public portion oh I'm sorry did somebody want to speak sir would you raise your right hand do you solemnly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth help you God I do and please State your full name and your address uh Spencer Rockman 33 Stone Street Edison Mr Ro May proceed you may proceed okay I'm not sure uh some of the uh thoughts that were already shared but I will say that because um how about Israel accommodates a uh an orthodox uh clientele so to speak everyone walks so if you have 100% participation you're going to have a close to 100% people walking so in terms of parking doesn't become a stress just wanted to like uh add that thought or reinforce that thought and how far from the synagogue do you live let's see minola from Route 27 we have minola and then Stone and Campbell the corner of stone and Campbell A lot of times I run but it's okay all right thank you Mr Rockman thank you sometimes you take a soccer ball and dribble the soccer ball down I know CU you taught my kids how to play soccer I I almost made a comment like that Mr chairman but I know you have another application coming up thank you Mr Rockman you're a wellknown soccer coach in that area I have to say anyone outside of 200 feet wanting to be heard last call can I get a motion to close the public portion motion to close public session second motion made by Vice chairman o' Gorman seconded by Mr Patel all in favor signify by saying I I oose nay the eyes have it public portion is now closed U Mr Finch if you would like to do a summation and then also just to remind you we do we have Bo five board members here present um so it's your decision if you want to roll for a vote tonight or um hold off for another evening uh no I would U pro proceed um I think the testimony has been clear I'm not going to spend much time s providing a summation but it seems the biggest issue is the parking and I think there's been ample testimony from both um the rabbi and U Mr Rockman and comments by the experts that the parking is the parking is sufficient under the circumstances not withstanding the technical requirements uh given the testimony that this is a walking synagogue and that um there's so that on the Jewish holiday holays and the Sabbath in the afternoon people are overwhelmingly walking and there's sufficient parking even with nine spaces currently for the beginning of the holidays and the Sabbath in the evenings um and then during the weekday mornings is definitely no issue because it's a significantly lower attendance 10 to 15 people and a decent portion of those people also walk so with that I would uh conclude and uh respectfully request that the board approve the application okay thank you very much Mr F we'll go now go to the board Mr chairman Vice chairman i' like to make a motion to approve this application houses of worship because they facilitate the free exercise of religion are considered an inherently beneficial use in New Jersey and they are assumed to satisfi satisfy the positive criteria required for granting of the variance the negative was the parking and the testimony supported it in reference to this sitting G being a walking in addition the appearance will be approved the safety for the parking will be approved the storm water management will be improved and also the um the function there will be learning session social events and a prayer session during the week it'll be roughly 10 to 15 people with uh sessions in the morning and the afternoon and the same on the weekends that's it I'm sorry and and also you'll comply with everything in the Bell planning consultant report and also the Delaware Aron engineering reports second motion made by Vice chairman AG Gorman second by Mr sedada roll call please Mr chabra yes the motion Mr Patel yes and the motion Mr sadaa yes to the motion Vice chair ogorman yes on a motion and chairman Kumba yes on the motion your unan approval congratulations good luck we're going to take a fem minute recess to give the court report an opportunity to rest her fingers uh before go next case e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e wait for th up I we'll return to session Madam Secretary next case on the agenda please case number z17 2022 Bol Bola Oil Corporation at 386 Route 1 applicant is seeking preliminary and final site plan approval and seeking bulk and use variances for retail store and fuel sale standards have not been met in accordance with the master plan existing fuel service station is not a permitted use in the RB zone max imperious coverage required is 40% proposed is 65% sidey setback required is 6 feet proposed is 0 feet in the RB Zone affected property is located in both gbh and RB Zone designated as block number 240 Lot number 1.02 on the Edison Township tax map all noticing paperwork is in order good evening Mr good evening Mr chairman members of the board happy New Year uh Jason tuel attorney for the applicant um the application was before the board on at its December 17th 2024 meeting at that meeting we presented a testimony from our civil engineer as well as our traffic engineer uh just to reorient the board to the project it's an existing fuel station um located at the property with a motor vehicle service station uh basically a a garage the application proposes to refit the existing building so the the building on site is not being enlarged in any way shape or form um with a retail store uh we are reducing impervious coverage on the site um we are enhancing the Landscaping storm water management Lighting on the property what the reason that we're before the board since the the use is permitted in the GB zone is that a small portion of the property is located in the RB Zone however what I'll say is nothing about that area is changing in fact we're actually enhancing the butt fer there we're enhancing the fencing there um and lighting and Landscaping as well the one issue that came up at the last meeting that I felt the that the applicant needed to address was the fact that we did have a variance for high-speed diesel if the board recalls that was probably the biggest issue that was discussed with the applicant at that meeting since then we submitted a revised memorandum to the board that we would be removing the high-speed Diesel from the application so there is no longer high-speed diesel proposed with this application so the only D variance that we have is the fact that a portion of the property which exists today is in the RB District but again we are reducing the um Improvement area in that location so Mr chairman today I have one witness that I plan on calling our professional planner Matt seckler from Stonefield engineering and design he did not testify at the last meeting so we should swear him in and qualify him um and he will go through the planning proofs uh for the variance relief being sought do you Sly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth truth nothing but the truth help you got yes I do and state your full name for the record my name is Matthew seckler that's SEC c k l r I'm with Stonefield engineering design address 92 Park Avenue in Rutherford New Jersey Mr seckler if you could give the board the benefit of a summary of your background qualifications certainly I have a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering from Union College I have a master's in cityor Regional planning from Ruckers University a licensed professional planner and professional engineer in the state been accepted before 100 boards as a plan and over 150 as an engineer and uh your license are current and in a good standing yes we'll accept you may proceed thank you so Matt in preparation of this application you visited the site in the surrounding area correct and you reviewed all the plans and application materials that have been put forth before the board yes and you've also analyzed the relevant sections of the master plan for the township of Edison as well as the applicable sections of the zoning code correct okay so why don't we get started just kind of reorienting the board to the site from a zoning perspective specifically focusing on the fact that the property is split zoned correct and I'm going to call back up A1 which was previously marked it was an aerial exhibit just to remind the board I know it's probably very difficult to see from up there but we've outlined the site in yellow uh this is again the site at the corner of Route One heading Northbound in Russell Avenue um the site is triangular and has two front yards the Russell Avenue front yard and the route one front yard and there's a portion of the site a little less than 7,500 Square ft uh it's about 22% of the total lot area that is in the RB Zone that is uh generally a rectangular portion of the property uh that fronts off of Russell Avenue and that is part of uh this application is that because we are a split Zone lot we are seeking a D1 use variance for the uh convenience store and gas fueling area uh that uh that is generally on the uh the larger lot the larger portion of the lot that is the gbh Zone again in the current condition in the RB zone is a portion of the repair facility and pavement that is utilized for parking and circulation uh as well as vegetation and trees that are within the RB Zone So currently today there's a portion of the building and drive aisles and parking spaces and what you'll see when I flip this board over and go back to A2 which was the colorized rendering what we've done is we've eliminated some of the pavement uh we're actually reduced about 15% of the impervious coverage or built uh uh built use within the RB Zone uh but we still will be seeking the use variant because there is a maybe about uh 1/8 of the handicap Ada parking stall that's in the RB Zone and a small corner of the building that is within the RB Zone to note the uh access to the building where customers would come in and out that maintains within the business zone so really in terms of any type of uh activity that is being drawn or brought about uh into the RB Zone it's very very minimal again di Minimus really a small portion of an ADA parking space and a small portion of the building in the corner of the building is in the RB Zone but that is why we are seeking the D1 use variants there's also um your RB Zone actually does allow your residential Zone does allow for off street parking supporting the business Zone business district uh so we did I believe notice for that conditional use standard we do not meet all the conditions for having parking in the residential Zone uh the one condition we cannot comply with is related to the buffer area we are not buring it up because we have existing trees and if we were to burm up the existing ground it could uh damage the existing trees we lose that existing vegetation that is along the back of the property and Matt as part of the application we agreed to comply and already have um integrated the Landscaping comments that the board planner had recommended correct correct and I think we've also agreed to uh eliminate any type of um lighting waivers as it relates to the areas near the buffer I believe the only waiver we have for lighting that remains is under the gas canopy itself again there are levels of lighting that is required under the gas canopy because you need to have safe transaction actions both in terms of the vehicular pedestrian interaction between the workers and the people driving in here but also people doing any type of cash or credit card transactions you want to have proper lighting Under The Canopy but we are complying with all the lighting levels as it relates to our property and the adjoining Residential Properties around us I do want to also mention we are moving the parking spaces that uh back up towards the residential zone of Residential Properties further away from the property line we're enhancing the vegetation right now there's a 3-ft fence that's generally in disrepair around the back of the property we are replacing that with an 8ft high fence so in terms of the interaction between the proposed development um and the Residential Properties that surround the site we are we do believe we're enhancing the buffer and helping separate the the permitted use within the uh business Zone and the residential uh uses that surround us we do think we're making a number of improvements to the site in addition we are narrowing the driveway along Russell Avenue that's an improvement from a safety and traffic perspective reducing the overall impervious coverage on the site so that's an improvement from an environmental perspective uh and as I mentioned uh really and we've also reduced the impervious coverage that's actually within the residential Zone itself uh by about 15% uh you've heard from um Council the one I'd say major change that we've seen from the application was here before at the last hearing to today is we removed the high flow diesel so again that also eliminated a variance but also uh as part of that removal we do believe that we've um addressed a number of the board's concerns as it related to queuing and circulation as it related to trucks um so that is I think a benefit that we the applicant has heard the concerns of the board and removed the high flow diesel highspeed diesel uh from this application in terms of signage um we are going to comply with all of the uh signage requirements on the canopy and the building itself there's an existing non-conformity for the existing freestanding sign we're looking to keep that freestanding sign just reface it you know new logos new pricing indications but maintain that pre-existing non-conformity there's also a number of um setback variances that this site currently um has in its existing condition we are either maintaining that or making those setbacks better as far as application so there's no setbacks as it relates to the canopy and building that we are worsening with this we only making them better or maintaining them and again this site has um you know some uh design constraints as it relates to the fact that is a um corner lot so you have two front yards you have a split Zone residential Zone and business zone so trying to find the right uses that mix with both those can be difficult we believe we found that by really having no activity or no business activity really being in the res residential Zone itself and keeping all the activity within the business Zone and not only having not having activity in the residential Zone but reducing the activity that exists today correct we've reduced the activity by reducing the amount of impervious coverage in the residential Zone uh as well as reducing the light levels and increasing the landscaping and buffering in that area um so overall again this application we did look at it from a D1 perspective as it relates to being a um non-permitted use again there is somewhat of a hardship the fact that is split zoned um this one lot does uh live its life in both a residential Zone and a business Zone uh but we did also evaluate this to determine if there's any significant negative impacts to the Zone plan or master plan we actually found that your master plan speaks to um enhancing or improving businesses along the Route One Corridor we think we've done that here with the enhanced Landscaping enhanced trees that are being added they're reducing impervious cover and the refacing of the property so we do believe that we're actually advancing uh goals and purposes of your master plan um in addition we don't believe that we are significantly impacting your zoning ordinance with this application we do believe that we are advancing uh purposes H and I with this application uh we are again improving the visual environment of the building and the grounds itself we're also improving the free flow of traffic by uh reducing the driveway width along Russell Avenue helping you know direct and maintain the traffic flow along Route One uh and again by reducing the driveway width on Russell Avenue it helps reduce the amount of traffic that would you use Russell Avenue and uh provide a more organized manner we've also provided the appropriate amount of parking on site uh which again also uh helps promote the free flow of traffic so overall I do believe that this application um for the D1 variants uh and the D3 variants as it relates to having the fueling station with the convenience store in the residential district and again it's just minimally within the residential district can be granted uh based uh based upon the medich standards all right so let's just break down the mediji standards Matt a little bit more from a particular suitability and special reasons perspective do you believe that the site that that small portion of the residential Zone that incorporates the property is particularly suited for the you know corner of the building and very small part of a parking ada8 parking space that's located in the zone yes we do yes I do believe it's particularly suited again it currently has a portion of the building in that area today we're reducing the amount of improvements in that area and I think that this uh this area of the site the residential area we're maintaining a significant amount of vegetation and then increasing the amount of vegetation so the fact that you're able to utilize the majority of that residential property residentially Zone portion of the property for buffering Landscaping I think is an improvement uh with this application and if that lot was developed separately there could be a structure on that property whereas now it's going to be mainly used for buffering correct if you were to subdivide this lot the residential portion off you'd be able to put a single family house much closer much taller with a lot more impervious coverage to the neighboring properties than what we have here which is a corner of a building and about an eighth of a parking an 88 parking space all right so now as to the negative criteria do you see any any issues with respect to parking or traffic as it relates to that small corner of the building and parking space in the residential zone no again there's no reason for any vehicular or even pedestrian access for customers in the rear of the building and again it's only a very small portion of the Ada stall that's within that residential portion and again that ADA stall is located so it becomes easy access to the to the commercial building and that is why it needs to be located where it is located all right and then I'm just sticking to typical things that the board May view as part of the negative criteria subst cial detriment to the public good do you see any visual impacts um based on what we're proposing do you think that there's a benefit over what exists today uh yes there's enhanced Landscaping over what's out there today again the building is further away than what a permitted Residential Building can be to the neighboring properties um again lighting zero light levels at all the um property um uh edges of the property as it relates to the residential portions of the site uh so again there is no uh negative visual impacts and as to to lighting as well all the lighting will be new LED cut off fixtures correct correct versus what exists today which is maybe some older fixtures that aren't as preferable for neighboring properties correct much more controlled lighting with the proposed lightings that were that we uh proposed for this application all right as it relates to storm order management do you see any negative impacts to the surrounding area No in fact we are improving storm water by reducing the amount of impervious coverage on the property in addition we are adding um some storm water facilities on the site uh to uh help intercept the water before it reaches route one so there's a reduction in overall impervious coverage for the whole property correct correct and there's a reduction of of impervious coverage in the residential Zone as well yes about 15% reduction in the impervious coverage in the residential property all right in addition to just other storm water facilities being added correct okay and then with respect to architectural architecturally do the improvements to the exterior of the building um as well as the you know the signage further purpose eye to promote a desirable visual environment yes I do believe it does again you're seeing a a significant facelift and investment to the uh the building and the property itself uh with the vegetation as part of the application all right and then in terms of substantial impairment to the Zone plan or Zone ordinance does the fact that this use is permitted on a vast majority of the property go to your analysis with respect to that correct again 78% of the property allow for this type of use and this intensity of use and we're basically not using a significant portion of that 22% of the property that that use is not permitted right so I was going to ask you is the fact that there's a negligable amount of of square footage of the building and a parking space in the RB Zone does that play into your analysis of whether there's a substantial impairment to the Zone plan or Zone ordinance correct I do not believe there's a substantial impairment again if we took this building and we moved it primarily within the residential zone or had Drive aisles or access points to the building that had commercial activity in the residential Zone I would not be able to say that there's not a substantial impact here it's a corner of a building and a portion of an ADA parking stall I don't see that being a substantial impact to the residential Zone plan okay and then just going back to I think I know we talked about it briefly but in addition to the large buffer and Landscaping that you indicated we would um Implement there was also an 8ft fence that were adding along the property line as well correct actually it's within our property so there's a significant buffer between the fence line and the residential neighbor so it's not like the residential neighbors will see a fence line and they won't get to appreciate the vegetation the fence line is p pushed in within the site itself more uh so that the there's more natural vegetation between our property and the neighbor okay and I believe um the civil engineer testified to this but just if you could reiterate it as the planner the applicant will agree to comply with all with the all the comments that have been set forth if not done so already by the board planner and board engineer correct okay all right I have nothing further Mr chairman for Mr seckler thank you board have any questions for Mr seckler Mr Sher I have a question Mr Cher um So currently in in your letter it says that the two proposed existing high-speed diesel pumps are being transitioned into low speed how many more pumps are there going to be in total for diesel so it'll still be those two pumps will just be converted to low speed diesel okay and how many um fuel heads dispensers are you having on this property how many vehicles could fuel at one time correct that's where I'm going at yes so you'd be able to fuel generally six Vehicles sorry um 12 vehicles at one time but because the diesel pumps are kind of in between it's you're not going to be able to likely fill up all four in a row based on the spacing unless you have a really small diesel car you will not be able to have a diesel and the adjoining um uh unleaded fuel at the same time okay because yeah so currently right now there's three dual correct me if I'm wrong three dual dispensers right so that six cars can fuel up right now without any diesel correct and with this proposal it would be 12 regular Vehicles plus the two diesel dispensers correct um now what's going to stop a you know 26t pensy or U-Haul truck from refueling with diesel here again they a small truck or performance vehicle I mean I think like Volkswagen BMW they have some Diesel Performance a you know Pensky truck they can circulate and fuel at that time if they would fuel they basically would occupy the diesel position and the position that's basically behind it so that would that's why you can't really have any more than you know three vehicles in a row if one of them is a Pensky trumpet truck as you mentioned yeah and and the low- speed diesel is permitted that's why we we um the high-speed diesel is what creates a variance under your ordinance the low speed diesel which we're proposing is now permitted so the applicant could even install that today if they if they chose on the existing site um but I've just speaking from experience regarding these types of projects like um we would agree as a condition because the goal here is not to have because we understood the board's concern similar to what you're raising now is we would not fuel tractor trailers at this location that would not be permitted based on what we're proposing so I understand you can use low speed diesel but I also understand that you're doubling the capacity of the existing gas station so doubling the capacity adding a convenient store obviously bringing in more influx of people now if the rear vehicle is filling up with regular gas or premium gas gasoline and now there's a 26t pensy that's in line for this now you're going to back up traffic on route one that was my whole disc discussion well I think that's the benefit of having multiple dispensers that have diesel so if let's say the first vehicle at the let's say the northernmost spot is is filled up you know with a with a passenger car there is another there a pensy vehicle can circulate to the southern side of the canopy or through the middle of the canopy and get to the diesel in those locations as well okay so there's two but there's two dispensers and they can go left and right correct yes okay and the way the current plan is it's accessible for a truck that's 26t long to maneuver through that traffic yes okay thank you for the clarification just to follow up on Mr Cher's question so in terms you say you stated no tractor trailers would you agree if so approv to signage stating no tractor trailers yes okay would you also train your staff to not service tractor trailers yes and I believe either it was this board or the planning board and impose that condition on the Wawa on route one as well that was that was a planning board that had the pleasure of that one yeah um okay because I mean just so you know I mean if if there's if if if the gentleman down the end of the day is he's driving by not you sh a uh if he's driving by and he sees a tractor trailer in there he's not going to be happy yeah we after the last hearing I spoke to the client about the board's concern regarding the high-speed Diesel and he understands that that was you know he wants to upgrade the site it obviously is in needed disrepair he's owned it for for not a long time and he wants to you know transition into a better station so he understood that and was fine with that being implemented as a condition great we appreciate that thank you any other questions from Mr segler seeing none okay thank you very much Mr that that concludes our case okay all right so we will now go to the public um anyone within 200 feet of subject site wanting to be heard if you were within 200 feet of subject site you received a notice via certified mail sir would you raise your right hand do you solemnly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth to help you guys I will okay pull the microphone closer State your phone name for the record and provide your address okay my name is sahil bangar uh 40 my address slow down sah what sahil bangar s a h i l last name last name b a n g a r address uh 46 Russell Avenue Addison New Jersey and just to confirm you're within 200 F feet right I'm I'm right next door right behind the gas station okay all right thank you very much all right so my I got a couple of concerns um the gas delivery that's 7 to7 um well yeah you know the gas always comes uh 2: in the morning 4 in the morning 5: in the morning um it's always off time and the lightning Under The Canopy it's LED light it's too bright it's always come coming through the windows and the you know whenever the the you know delivery come he never turns off his engine and you know it's all he's there for like 30 40 minutes it's always running the truck is always running and uh you know it he did mention 8ot uh uh fencing uh if you know 12 12 foot fence it's you know it will block off some lightning uh it'll be better do want me to address that Mr chairman if he's if he's done I just don't want you to me mess with his his clock no sure if you're still going go ahead I got a couple of okay go so highspeed diesel is removed but you guys still got diesel uh on the site um but diesel uh engine does make a lot of noise um you know I you know it it will make a lot of noise during night time daytime um they do about two loads uh uh a day of a gas and uh so that this gas station is way busier and the traffic is always backed up during the summertime uh to the route one um and uh if if there there's diesel on on the station yeah I mean you would expect a couple of trucks pull in and and the traffic would be backed up all the way to the route one that's it okay thank you very much uh sure so we we testified to what the um delivery hours would be at the last meeting um so unlike today where I guess you you have um you know pre-existing station for quite some time if the board were to approve the application the conditions of our delivery times would be part of the approval and we'd have to abide by those and I'll ask Mr seckler just to reiterate what those times were Matt if you have them I believe they were seven to seven yeah that's we'd have to comply with what the board which which which limitation does not exist today um from an idling perspective I don't believe the trucks are allowed to idle that's a state law so that's something not really within the jurisdiction of the board but we're happy to put up signs that say no idling and we'll AB I'll speak to the client if there is an issue I don't know if that's correct or not correct but assuming that that has occurred that would be something that would have to comply with it wouldn't really be a zoning board issue it would be more of a of a of an Enforcement issue but we would be happy to comply with that as as I believe we have to um the diesel again the lowf flow diesel is permitted by by the ordinance so I I you know it is permitted the the majority of the property is located within the GB Zone where everything that we're proposing is is allowed from a use perspective um the 12ft fence I leave that up to Mr bignell and um Mr Carly's office um from what I always hear at these meetings about high fences they become sus susceptible to wind as an issue so I know it sounds oh just make the fence a little bit higher so I don't think the applicant would have an objection to it but my understanding is typically the higher you put a fence sometimes the wind gets to it so that's why we felt that substantial Evergreen buffering was the way to go here to ensure that um there was proper buffering which doesn't exist today between the residential Zone and this property and Matt those those trees that were proposing along those the property line they would they would grow substantially even Beyond 12 feet correct correct and I I don't know where the residence property is but we do have existing vegetation that enhanced ve vegetation that's being added basically around the Russell Avenue and residential buffer in the rear uh also the way that the existing canopy is I believe that the lights are a little uh lower than the canopy itself versus them being inset so it's possible that right now lighting is seen because the lights kind of uh hang hang down from the from the bottom of the canopy versus in the proposed condition will they'll be in set which will help uh prevent being able to see the light sources themselves plus the building it again all the vegetation around it would help Shield any type of lighting on the site yeah so we're improving like we tried to test which explain through testimony the lighting condition on the site will be substantially enhanced for the better for the public as as a result of upgrading the property but I I leave it to Mr bignell or Mr Carly's office on the fence issue Mr chairman Mr B the um you turn that microphone off yeah okay somebody okay so did I sorry Mr V I apologize no problem the um the ordinance requires that when a a commercial um operation is next to a residential that an 8ot fence uh be installed so I don't think you want to go 12 foot that's that's too high8 so 8 foot will do it along with the Landscaping if the board chooses to and having having reviewed the growth plan you think that is suitable yes I think he's done a pretty good job with the buffer I do understand the objective's concern and I I knew he he was going to be here this evening so um you know I think that the delivery has to be locked into a condition of approval so it's not during uh you know evening hours absolutely all right okay thank you very much yeah and again there's gas being delivered there today as a result of of the board we can you know make sure that there's a Time limitation on that and the applicant has testified to that okay I would also just briefly talk about the grading of the site right now and again I don't know if this is the obor's property of along Russell Avenue this sits at around elevation 113 our fence is going to be about elevation 118 so our fence is going to be about 5 feet higher just from natural gr just from how we're grading and then we have the 8 foot high fence on top it starts 5T higher the fence starts 5T higher and then goes up compared to the property on Russell avue yes okay all right I mean anything on a diesel because uh I mean it's going to make a lot of noise uh during a night time and you know I mean people are my neighbors are sleeping at night time you know everybody sleeps at night so I mean so as as Mr tel said diesel is permitted permitted within the zone so it's not that we're granting a variance so it's it's beyond uh it's beyond our our control oh okay thank you very much Mr chairman Mr Gman sir back up for a second did did they did they address your concerns about the lighting and the delivery time well the lightning um if the canopy uh like he said uh about the canopy or stuff I think if you if you guys raise up the fence uh recently they built a Taco Bell uh near my house uh they they do have a 12et fence um well it would be nice to block off some lightning uh you know if if if 12 feet yeah again I leave that up to the professionals so if if Mr Bell thinks you know he's indicated an eight foot fence with the Landscaping was appropriate but again we I'm the applicants willing to work on that with the board professionals to ensure they they find it to be suitable Mr chairman if the if the grade is already 5 feet high and you're adding another 8 foot to that that's 13 foot but I will be more than glad to go out and and uh check the site and make sure that that gentleman's concerns are uh are are taken care of with with a larger fence if you want to write that into the conditions of approval we'll certainly do that before we sign off okay all right so are you satisfied with that well if he's willing to take a look at go on a site and willing to take a look then yeah okay yeah and everything else your concerns have been addressed and also one more thing they uh the bathroom works so they you know they use the bathroom right outside every customer the the good news is I mean again with the upgrade of the site I mean I'm sure it's an older building and it's been there for a while um when the applicant purchased it you'll have a brand new building with restrooms on the inside um that have to meet code I'm assuming um and that'll be that'll that'll be better than it is today as well there's also going to be a restaurant so the the the bathroom is going to have to be a working bathroom so as to allow for toet the health regulations for yeah working bathroom so well yeah I mean baa he been there for since 2021 I would assume he would fix it ever since you bought the uh gas station but he actually never did okay all right and Mr Tel you're willing your client's willing to allow Mr Bell on this Bell on the site to R to check out the fence oh yeah of course we're happy to work with the board's professionals on that that's fine all right excellent okay um anyone else when outside 200 feet want to be heard sir sir raise your right hand do you solemnly swear or affirm to tell the whole truth nothing but the truth yeah yes I do and you state your pull the microphone close enough State your full name and your address yes I'm Muhammad janin m o h a m e d uh last name is jun j u n a i d e e and I'm 40 Russell Avenue Edison New Jersey 40 40 what street I just want to make sure Russell Avenue can you bring the micophone Clos to you sir sorry 40 Russell Avenue oh okay uh exactly right behind the gas station okay uh almost I'm over there like 13 14 years right now uh now couple of years are busy that gas station when enter the gas station route one when coming for the Route One North they enter the all the lights and everything come into the my window completely everything for that I have a grand kids uh sometime uh when busy time morning and uh evening uh everybody making hor and everything then a lot of traffic on after then uh if they start for the again for the for the diesel or something so again you know there's a truck make a horn and everything we cannot sleep and everything you know that sometime this going to be happen to us right now also so a lot of busy still we are you know going like that after the remove uh at the gas uh and uh fuel Diesel and everything again uh little be tough to us right so so oh sorry you finished I'm sorry yes I just wanted to Matt can you just the headlight issue we're improving that significantly over what exists today correct correct currently there is a three foot high split rail fence which basically is just two wooden posts that you could see right through um that um separate our property or our development from uh the other properties on Russell Avenue we're going to be replacing that with an 8ot high Sou blood fence board on board so any headlights coming in from I think you're saying people that are coming in from Route One what they would basically either shining they either hit the building the headlights or they would hit the eight foot high fence that would be solid and it wouldn't be able to shine through so I don't believe that under the proposed condition you're going to have the same headlight issue that you may be having to and in addition to the to the to the fence which is solid and which is opaque so you can't see through it you're also going to have Evergreen plannings between the property line and that fence correct yes okay when they park the car that's exactly Park parking the car exactly uh in my home the face to my home right so we're so yeah no I understand what you're saying we're eliminating that so so that'll be so that'll Matt if you could just explain that a little bit better too what about the noises you know a lot of noises coming you know yeah I mean look we we're not going to you I I have grandkids and know two kids and everything because sometimes is it sleeping on the time problem you know I understand I think that's why the applicant and also the board professionals when they reviewed the application went at Great Lengths to ensure that the buffering and the fencing along the residential property line was robust and significant then sometime you know trucks guys you know make a ha or something you know you know we have to go to work you know kids are sleeping the home that's uh little bit okay okay anything else to add sir that's sir okay thank you very much thank you okay anyone else with uh within 200 fet of subject property wan to be heard anyone outside 200 F subject property wan to be heard last call can I get a motion close the public portion motion to close the session public session second motion made by Vice chairman o' Gorman second by Mr sedada all favor signifi by saying I I nay the eyes have it public portion is now closed Mr tual um it is your um opin it's your choice we have five me voting members here this evening yeah I I spoke with Council before the meeting um unless the board was willing to do some sort of straw poll obviously I don't do I come I don't want to come back on necessarily but if they're not then I would respectfully request if we could carry it for a vote and and I could do a closing at the next meeting and if there are board members who aren't present I can like we did the last time I can provide a transcript so that the um any board member who was not president at a meaning could read it yeah this is in Iowa we don't straw poll so that's fine I had to ask but that's fine that's okay yeah that's how you tried um okay Rachel what do we have February 25th we can put you on for summation okay um I'll just triple check but I think that should be that should be acceptable yeah that that works that's okay good all right Mr chairman Mr B and I'll go out there before then and look at the fence and you'll have an answer that night okay great okay yeah thank you okay so for anyone here present and for anyone listening at home uh this case will uh be continued to Tuesday February 25th 2025 meeting will be again at 7 pm uh here in council chambers if you received a notice you will not receive another notice this will serve as your notice um and this will be carried for summation and vote only okay great thank you thank you everybody thank you Mr have a good night Madame secretary um we have a close session I believe yes uh American outdoor litigation Z 53 2019 can I get a motion to go on the close session motion to go to close public session second motion made by Vice chairman ogorman second by Mr sedado all in favor second by by saying iose nay the eyes have it we Jour to uh close session just