##VIDEO ID:cJt02z8n14w## this meeting of the planning board of November 13 2024 will please come to order adequate notice of this meeting pursuant to the open public meeting act in that notice was posted on Municipal website posted outside of B and published in the curent news and Star Ledger this meeting is a Judicial hearing and Decor appropriate is expected at all times roll call Andrea D here Chris addex here R aens here Larry Cleveland here Jason crasa here John manilo here mayor Gallagher here council member V here and acting chairperson Warner is excused pledge alance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all all right um we're going to start with the oath of office for Barry Van Horn is that Cara come on out Barry Barry's being appoint right in front he's being appointed to the planning board yeah not yet you're G your arms going to get tired all right SAR I will support the Constitution of the United States I will support the Constitution of the United States theti new JY of St new JY and that I will faithfully and partially and justly I will Faithfully perform all the duties of a planning board member per of to the best of my ability of [Applause] abil just so the seat at the Bo knows just got licensed in New Jersey with his PE I saw that congratulations as well congratulations fantastic great addition to the board right thank you um the minutes from the regular session October 23rd 2024 um there's just one correction that I noticed um in the approval of the minutes it doesn't have a motion and it has myself seconding it I actually made the motion for both of them and Andrea seconded it so with those changes I just need a motion so ai ai ai ai ai oh II excuse me roll call Andrea dare yes Chris addex yes art aens yes Larry Cleveland yes John manelo yes mayor Gallagher yes council member room yes Jason crasa yes all right there's no resolutions we do have two appointments tonight um Ryan correct my uh pronunciation here is it bakey all right um as the new board secretary and Kevin Suka is the Deputy dep Bey board secretary moving forward can't see them on camera but they're sitting down there actually you can I'll make that motion second roll call Andrea D yes Chris addex yes art aens yes Larry Cleveland yes John manilo yes mayor Gallagher yes council member of room yes Barry Van Horn yes Jason crasa yes welcome all right first discussion item um we have the ARB procedure and corner lot final discussion prior to the council introduction um I know we had some lengthy discussions in previous meetings about this um did everybody have a chance to look through the documents that were sent back to us with those few red lines on them it was mostly just cleaning it up and changing a few punctuations um any discussion on any items before we send it up to the council looks good to me with those revisions um go ahead then I guess Kevin if we can get those sent up to the council for their next meeting and put this to bed before the new year hopefully it'll it'll be uh it'll be on the agenda introduction on Monday be on the agenda tomorrow yes uh next uh do we need to vote on that or probably a good yeah a good thing to do all right so we come back to you yeah it's gonna come back to us and you could see I just made a couple other comments and questions for the council to consider that may just kind of tie it up a little bit ultimately they'll put together their final draft that'll come back to us after they introduce so we can look at this again but yeah we might as well just do a vote and send it up with James make a motion to send to council second roll call Andrea D yes Chris addex yes R aens yes Larry Cleveland yes John manilo yes mayor Gallagher yes council member of room yes Barry Van Horn yes Jason crasa yes all right moving on we have the checklist for compliance Mike sent out with some changes um again looking to send this up to council did everybody get a chance to look at that one and review Mike's changes I think it cleans it up a lot um cleans up language that hasn't been changed in 15 years yeah it just it gives you the flexibility on 11 by 17 or electronic or bigger or whatever the state comes out with uh changed it to make some of the stuff in line with the current regulations defining a few things but uh more importantly I stole Bridgewood escrow agreement and how the replenishments was right now there's not a policy so should the board make this recommendation the escrow agreement and Cara has some comments of the TW the escrow agreement but making that part of the checklist it looked good to me with the you know when it gets down you replenish at to 25% so at least there's a standard yeah exactly as opposed to Case by case which gets everybody in trouble sometimes about being subjective this way would be this is the this is what the ordinance says is 25% and it's applicable to all applications any comment from the board questions care anything I just had a couple questions or or comments for you guys to consider do we still want 16 copies is that what we want to recommend I know we're going down to the smaller versions do we want to you know give an option or just say just do go down to smaller versions and still do the 16 plus the electronic um that's really up to you guys um again this is also something that would have to go to council back to you so you'll be able to look at this again um other two other questions I had um I guess we do get a receipt and Mike this is probably more for you we get a receipt indicating that the deposits that fees are paid is it an acce okay and then there's a certificate um regarding prior actions or is it just copies of the it just copies typically the we it's been the policy the bureau handles that typically internally to get the copies y copies of the the prior resolutions and things like that um I do think according to statute we have to provide the 10% of the corporate uh ownership of any applicant regardless of what type of application it is so I think we should under AG I think we should require that regardless um and not just for uh subdivisions or um uh multiple dwellings whatever that one pertains to and I think there was one more this is a mic question under K we don't need that information you don't think and I just wanted just for my purposes so I understand well it's my understanding that these are approvals outside should the board Grant approval that have to comply with d uh to make it on the up front I don't think I don't think that's that's fine totally fine yep all right other than that I'm good anybody else on the board any comments yeah no I think Cara actually hit all my points um I don't know do we need 16 copies of the actual application and checklist I mean I think that's more for completeness purpos well typically it's just the plans John the plans yeah but the a list 16 copies of yeah all the appropriate application forms yeah so the plans I agree with the the applications I think you just need it for so we just clarify to make it 16 copies of the drawings correct additional 13 copies of drawings right okay um at the reduced size the red size 11 by 17 so that's the drawings right and then Cara was saying about um K getting rid of that that's fine but that you probably should add Wetlands as uh item I guess l13 location of natural features Wetlands just so it's added in there if there are wetlands L is it l oh I I sorry y That's the other L lower case El's the deed restrictions uh that yeah that's the only comments I had I agree with all of them anything else from the board and do we have a motion to move um send to coun yeah just for the submit the three yeah and then we're going to clarify the additional drawings drawings not application will be of the 11 by 17 or as directed by the board so there's some a major application the board would like to see to scale plans you could request that if it's something small then it's just 11 by 17 of the drawings yeah additional drawings at the request of the board right we have a motion with those changes so moved second all call Andrea D yes Chris addex yes art aens yes Larry Cleveland yes John manelo yes mayor Gallagher yes council member of room yes Barry Van Horn yes Jason crasa yes um and then we kind of touched on the escrow agreement already that um Mike sent out it was a sample that he borrowed from Bridgewater um basically it just cleans up our language giving a percentage that when they hit a 25% they have to replenish um so using this as a sample does anybody have any discussion comment Mike Cara yeah the only comment I had was in there it talks about that the fees must be provided within 14 days of execution of the agreement if that agreement is going to be part of the application the fees are also part of the application that 14-day period would apply to any replenishment so Mike and I just talked about a little change to that language section fine yep yeah she's saying to clarify it so that when the application submitted with the esre agreement that the fees are there with the application as opposed to saying 14 days later then if it needs to be replenished it has to be replenished within 14 days of receipt of the request yeah make sense yes any comments from the board all right do we have a motion to send that up to council so move second roll call Andrea D yes Chris addex yes art aens yes Larry Cleveland yes John manelo yes mayor Gallagher yes council member of room yes Barry Van Horn yes Jason CA yes all right thank you you guys going to have a busy meeting um so pending business um going to kind of do the tree ordinance and storm water ordinance together um we don't have much information on those yet for us to have an open discussion um I know the environmental commission has been looking at these um yes so I don't know if we want to get a no and I think Kevin's putting it on the uh the agenda just to so that it doesn't fall off the agenda some point that what we're trying to do is to put items that are in current or in need of discussion on the agenda so that we have the ability to understand where they're at at any given point in time um because I think what's happening or what has happened is some things begin to fall off the agenda it kind of goes away because we get caught up in other elements um but yeah the uh the environmental commission has put forward um or I shouldn't say put forward they they I've had some discussions with the environment mental commission regarding the uh the storm water ordinance as it relates to a tree ordinance um and and that's an ongoing discussion and larryan and I have just had some discussion about this it's probably a good idea for us to get together a couple of representatives from Council and a couple of representatives from the environmental to have a discussion um about where this is going because there's you know there there's different interpretations of what the state is looking for um and that different inter interpretation is mine um and and well about I am well and and I'll be I'll be blunt about it you know the the the way the draft ordinance um was put together by the state and given as a part of this package um it it mandates a property owner if they cut a tree down on their property of a calber that's what three Ines three and a half inches somewhere around there they have to at their expense they are mandated then by law to replace a tree on their own property now I understand the idea of replacing trees it's a good thing to replace them but if you're a homeowner and you you don't want a tree in your backyard government should no way be going near your backyard telling you you have to have a tree to me that's absolutely wrong so I think there's better things that we can do through education and I think the environmental commission has done a great job of educating people um in terms of the benefits of trees and and Greenery and and and they've done a I think in the past couple of years a great job at it and I think there's an ability there for us to have a discussion and come up with something that's beneficial to town to the environment without being uh an inordinate overreach of government into someone's private property that's why I have a different interpretation so um but I think do we have any lawyers that may have an interpretation about that yeah sorry asking well and and I think and that's that's a part of it I've asked Mike to look into it Mike actually gave me a stack of paperwork there's really no statute behind it there's some rules and there's some interpretations but there's no statute behind it um so I think that's where we have to have some of this discussion um I know there are some towns that have adopted it I not all but there are some uh do we have to adopt something I don't know because our the way our ordinance reads right now the burrow is responsible for uh replacing trees that we take down that are in our jurisdiction um in in the rights of way in the Parklands uh in our public spaces and and we have that policy in place already so you know the the reach into the private property realm is a to me it's a very big deal and I think we need to tread very carefully and that's why I think we should have a a discussion about it so then going forward you and I can talk about setting up some sort of meeting abs absolutely in the next month before the end of the year if not if not before the end of the year right after the term well because my understanding is that a couple of these things are passed due on the ordinance adoption so I don't know what the teeth are on the back end of not complying with the adoption of the ordinance but the sooner the better yeah well maybe it could even be have a meeting about having a meeting that's so government Larry um but no we we'll have a chat we'll figure it out because as you know leading up to the new year there's a whole lot of yes stuff and transition so um we've just got to make time all right so we're not making any decisions on anything right now we're not prepared to anyway no okay yeah bar in mind the ordinance can't straddle a year so so what'll happen is um well we're not even TR do Happ the end of the year we're not anywhere near that we still have to decide whether or not to without the I'm saying legislatively you are because the governing body doesn't have enough time to um we haven't even the governing body doesn't have enough time to to have an introduction a public hearing and adoption right if if in fact they weren't introducing on Monday which is not the case I just want to let you know you do have time this is not something that's pressing against the year yeah from from a legislative standpoint got it all right um we have the EV stations for residential parking decks um are we do we want to discuss that one tonight or are we no I think that's another one that that the planning board that Roger brought to the planning board uh the board felt that it was uh a very good discussion and uh implementation of an ordinance that would uh regulate EV as it relates to development yeah where they are in the development correct not under Not underneath the residential uh into buildings underneath yeah absolutely yeah and again I think this falls into that we can't let it fall off the the radar uh so it's on there so at every meeting we can have a discussion and say okay well now let's let's schedule this for our discussion at the next meeting so that well going forward though if we have an application come in we would address it right then and there and say like we did you can't have them under the in the deck you can't have them under the building right so we'll just deal with that until we can get to corre correct yance would you a little to to certainly conne any you have the ability forf and other reasons to say yes this is where we want this is where um the insruance of the 2025 RFP professionals guidance um I assume we're I assume that's coming from Kevin looking for guidance if we're doing quotes or if we're you're professional contracts end at the end of the year it doesn't preclude you from extending them a month or so but it's something at some point um maybe when the chair is back you just again provide the municipality some guidance we will as we've done before uh issue our P for um for the boards my suggestion to the board is um we we have done that we actually have responses back um and I my suggestion would be we just reconvene into EX session the next meeting when the chair is back and and we can have that discussion fine with that anybody else all right um 2025 meeting schedule as the planning board's typical we're the second and fourth Wednesday of each month um we did switch to 6 PM this year in mid year um the meetings are here the only two dates I went and figured them all um that conflict with anything if we don't want to publish them are November 26th which is the day before Thanksgiving typically we don't have a meeting that night and the way it falls this year is Christmas Eve will be a Wednesday night I assume we going to that sounds like a party um so if we want we can just publish all the others on the second and uh fourth of each month I think that's a good thing to do still at six still at six six y yeah that's helpful because as car pointed out one of our newspapers aren't publishing so I'd like to get this publication in while the legislation's figuring out what we're going to do so between it'll be helpful because we'll be able to cover the meetings all the way at least until October under the the current uh statute do we need a motion on that or uh to uh authorize the uh meeting on on those on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month um through the month of October and November December you'll decide I assume so we can still have the first meeting of the month DEC excluding the the fourth meetings of November and December do we have a motion so moved second roll call who the second me Roger Andrea dare yes Chris addex yes art aens yes Larry Cleveland yes John manelo yes mayor Gallagher yes council member V yes Barry Van Horn yes Jason crasa yes all right thank you um applications required by the regional center partnership we have one from Bridgewater Mike do you want to just give a quick recap on this it's basically a pad mounted huge battery bank that it's not in the application but I think it's to help the grid doing brown outs proposing a a pad mounted transfer uh substation and massive batteries that are pad mounted that obviously are going to be used during low voltage in my opinion to help the region out uh I ran this briefly by uh Robert Lynn the fire marshal who I think reached out to the board of Engineers uh it's just a concern from the burrow that's why we get these noticing to see if this is going to have an adverse or any impact on the burrow and his opinion was it was so far away that even if there's a fire it should not adversely impact the burough streets or residents so there's uh that's why you don't see a report if there was something that I thought would have an impact on the burough I'd write a report for the planning board to to uh review a letter report but I didn't write one because I don't I don't think there's anything really to write about other than there this is happening and it's down by the sewer was SRV say plan up pomas yeah that that's where the the county parks their yes dilapidated Vehicles yes right next to it yeah so are they are they looking at the upper part of that lot or the lower part because doesn't the lower part go underwater I it's the subdivision I think Kevin said that we're looking at this uh they're subdividing the property so the regional Authority still owns property but I think it's the upper part mayor that's not flooding this is in conjunction with J with uh psng yes it has to be it the application from their substation yeah so are all the substations going to get this ultimately that's a good question it's battery it's a storage of power but they don't go into why I'm just speculating that you only store power when you need it during a brown out or something my opinion to buffer the system yeah is is it a is it a PS project or is it a county Improvement Authority project or we don't I have some familiarity with that site um the last Administration looked at that site as a future DPW site it it is adjacent to the existing County Garage there um we had looked at that site at that time the county advisers they did have a lease on that property I assume for the same facility it were site uh battery recycling agency um their agreement called I believe was a 10year lease but they had to within five years start the project I believe this is the project okay so um you know the site if I recall correctly it's about uh the site's a little over uh two acres when we had looked at it it sounds like it sounds like the S the Improvement Authority is maintaining a small portion of that and they're going to subdivide it and that con that that developer who we spoke about four or five years ago is now starting that project okay very okay Communications round four obligations um I think everybody got them sent out to them um yeah I I can talk a little bit to that um obviously the numbers came out uh for affordable housing uh we are meeting tomorrow evening uh with the Redevelopment committee along with um uh representatives of the planning board zoning board um our planner our affirmative action planner our affirmative uh affordable housing planner and um and our attorney our affordable housing attorney uh we've got a lot of work to do in a short period of time so tomorrow is uh is kind of like the game plan uh we're going to give Mike some marching orders on updating our current which I'm sure you're probably already beginning to delve into um and the attorney will then also guide on what they feel may be appropriate or not appropriate to include in our in our overall plan um so more more to follow after that but but it's beginning it's moving mayor what's also in your packet is that proposed legislation um that that they've proposed to reduce your numbers from your prospective need numbers from 74 to 20 whether or not that ever comes to fruition I mean I think that's a in the idea but yeah yep never know there's a whole lot of movement going on there's also a number of municipalities that are challenging the uh the legislation in court now uh they're expecting a judgment soon so who knows but we we can't wait so we just have to keep moving forward right I have no additional comments we're going to at this time open the meeting up to the public hearing none we'll close the public portion I don't believe we have anything to go into executive for any comments anything from the board mayor Mr chair just one thing um if you might recall New Jersey Elixir we adopted a resolution a while back it had two conditions that the applicant was looking to change the requested uh changes to the conditions came back before this board the board changed the hours but did not want to change the alleyway condition of providing proof of of use um I've been contacted by the attorney um they would like to come before the board to talk about that um and I reached out to them before this meeting to see if they were coming here because I never heard anything they said no but we would like to come at the next meeting so I guess if we could if it's all right I said I would check with the chair check with the board make sure that's all right they would like to come and and discuss what their changes would be um at this point I don't think they would need to notice or anything like that depending upon what their request would be and what the board's consideration would be then they may have to go back and notice for a meeting but um I said I would bring it to the board and see if that was okay to put on the agenda for the next meeting what do we have on the agenda for the next Route 20 uh Ro 22 needs to come back to you with a a final right uh that they they you approve their preliminary that's the only thing other than items that you have listed here that's the only application you're hearing um that um at that meeting right should be quick I would assume so I I don't think it will be long I have no issue with it un miss any would you like them scheduled before or rout 22 Route 22 yeah I would let them come in and get out before sitting through the hall I'll let I'll let the attorney know and then we'll just put on the okay so you'll you'll have Elixir come in first I I would also you know as long as they're not looking for relief from that requirement um to make it go away because have to have a means of egress they it's it's it's a moot point if they're if they're looking to create a different means of egress out the back then that's probably something we can discuss but yeah I don't want to speak for them mayor and I don't want to talk too much about it without them being here but again have them come have them make their request and then based upon what they're asking for um if they need to notice because it would be a significant change or whatever the case may be then We'll advise them at that point but I don't want to put words in their mouth what I did say to them when they were dis pleased with how the last meeting went I said well you should have been here so you knew we were talking about it was on the agenda so that's why I said why don't you come this time and and make your own arguments because I can't make those Arguments for you okay anything else and I'll entertain a motion to adjourn so move second all in favor I the next meeting is December 11th we do not have a meeting the day before Thanksgiving so great December 11 thank you everybody thank you you