Friday, April 5, 2013
Wednesday testimony before the Zoning Board of Adjustment focused on an 'academic exercise.'
The Zoning Board of Adjustment continued its long consideration of a proposal to build an International Society of Krishna Consciousness temple at Baldwin and Troy roads Wednesday at Town Hall. It was hoped that perhaps the case could move to final summations or perhaps a ZBA vote, but neither occurred. Instead, the case was carried to the board's June 5 session. The case has been deliberated for more than three years. A host of opponents have fought the project, among them owners of historic homes in the area and businesses such as Baldwin Ventures. They say the ISKCON plan would erode their quality of life and bring noise and traffic to an already congested area. But the primary complaint was the focus of Wednesday's proceedings: …
Thursday, February 21, 2013
The long-running ZBA deliberation continued as the applicant late in the game asks to amend plan to request another variance.
There still is no resolution in the International Society of Krishna Consciousness' bid to win Zoning Board of Adjustment approval to proceed with its plan to construct a house of worship in the area of Baldwin and Troy roads. The board heard testimony from two witnesses at its Wednesday meeting before deciding to carry the application over to its April 3 meeting. The matter has been deliberated for more than three years. A host of opponents have resisted the erection of a temple, among them owners of historic homes in the area and businesses such as Baldwin Ventures. They say the ISKCON plan would erode their quality of life and bring noise and traffic to an already congested area. Wednesday's session began with a request from Robert …
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
New townhouse development proposal still a concern, Preserve Mountain Way founder says.
The township Zoning Board of Adjustment takes up a revised version of the previously rejected 700 Mountain Way townhouse proposal at its Wednesday meeting at Town Hall. And opponents to the Edward Mosberg development plan are gearing up to resume their battle against it. The new proposal reduces the number of townhome units from 22, the number stated in the plan rejected by the board, said attorney Robert Garofalo of Garofalo & O'Neill, the law firm representing the developer. "The revised application is for 20 townhomes," Garofalo said. "This avoids any of the critical slope variances that were previously required, and there are no other variances other than the density." In May 2011, professional planner John McDonough testified before …
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Planning Board planner's letter among topics that created contention as deliberation on the long-discussed application continued.
The Parsippany-Troy Hills Zoning Board of Adjustment spent another long Wednesday night at Town Hall hearing testimony on a controversial proposal to build a temple at Baldwin and Troy Roads. The four-year-old matter was not settled and will come before the zoning board again Dec. 19. As has been usual as this application's consideration has progressed, conflict was the order of the day during Wednesday's testimony. The moment President Robert Iracane brought the International Society of Krishna Consciousness' application to the floor, the developer's attorney, Robert Garofalo, took aim at a letter planner Edward Snieckus submitted to the ZBA in September. Garofalo insisted that Snieckus, who works for Burgis Associates and serves as …
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Controversial project rejected by Zoning Board will be reconsidered; residents opposed vow to fight again.
The Parsippany Zoning Board of Adjustment unanimously agreed to reconsider developer Edward Mosberg's plan to build a townhouse community in the Powder Mill area at its Wednesday night meeting at Town Hall. What began as a 38-unit senior community and evolved into an all-ages development of only 22 units over more than four years of deliberation finally went down to defeat June 6 by a vote of 4-3. Attorney Joseph O'Neill, representing Mosberg, appealed to the ZBA to give the project another hearing. O'Neill argued that the site plan for what's called 700 Mountain Way has been revamped. The number of units was cut to 20, which the lawyer said would preclude the need for steep slope variances, which gave some board members pause. He also …
Monday, July 16, 2012
Parsippany happenings for the week starting July 16
There is much to do in the township this week. Our spotlight event is the Parsippany Scholarship Blood Drive. The charity event takes place Wednesday from 1:30-7:30 p.m at the Parsippany Police Athletic League at 33 Baldwin Road. The drive, organized by two local high school students in cooperation with N.J. Blood Services, has a goal to collect over 50 units of blood. If the students meet their goal, they will earn scholarships for college. Those who donate will benefit surgery and trauma patients, people being treated for cancer and burn victims—and they will get in return "rewards points" that can be redeemed for gift cards to AMC Theatres, Macy's, Target, Barnes & Noble or N.J. Blood Services. The especially generous may also choose to…
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Zoning Board spent more than three years deliberating development before denying it, but now will hear the case again.
The contentious 700 Mountain Way townhouse community proposed by developer Edward Mosberg was denied by the Parsippany Zoning Board of Adjustment in June after more than three years of consideration has returned. Now, the plan to build a 22-unit townhouse community near a residential section including Mountain Way, Rocky Heights and South Powder Mill Road is coming back before the body. At the Wednesday night ZBA meeting, President Robert Iracane announced that the matter is coming up for a re-hearing on Aug. 15 to consider revised information concerning the project's application. "I guess I am not surprised," said Rick Jilleba, who headed Preserve Mountain Way, a residents' group opposed to the townhouse proposal. "This is a little …
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Concentra Urgent Care may move next door to replace the long-gone pet grooming and supplies center.
Plans are underway to bring new life to the old Mega Pet site at 196 Route 46 West. The Parsippany-Troy Hills Zoning Board of Adjustment heard an application at its Wednesday meeting that would, if approved, allow an urgent care medical center to fill the site, as the first phase in a three-step redevelopment plan. The property containing Mega Pet includes two other buildings: the Concentra Urgent Care at 200 Route 46 and another building behind Mega Pet that once owned an Asian food market. The entire site is owned by Rockaway-based developer Ron Laroy, who owns many Route 46 corridor properties. Under phase one of Laroy's three-step plan, Mega Pet would be razed and a new one-story building erected. Concentra would move its operations to…
Thursday, June 7, 2012
The board didn't take its president's advice and instead focused on resident concerns.
After about four years of stops and starts, plus hours of testimony and deliberation, the Zoning Board of Adjustment voted 4-3 to deny an application for a controversial townhouse development called 700 Mountain Way. The vote came along at the end of an emotional meeting Wednesday night at Town Hall. Area residents appeared before the board to make passionate last-ditch appeals to the board to reject the development's application. Arnt Thuen of Mountain Way argued that he saw no need for another townhouse development in an area filled with single-family standalone residences. "Given the density of the neighborhood, its zoning and character, adding additional single-for the master plan as it stands," he said. "The master plan applies, it is…
Monday, May 7, 2012
Gas station will soon offer car and box truck rentals.
The Parsippany Zoning Board of Adjustment approved an application for a site expansion at the Sunoco gas station at 730 Route 46 at its meeting at Town Hall Wednesday night. Under the plan, the station will get six additional parking spaces, enabling the business to rent cars and box trucks to interested customers. Appearing on behalf of the Sunoco was Richard Dovlatyan, who has operated the station for 17 years. His application met all of the board's conditions, which included expanding the length of the parking spaces to 21 feet to accommodate the 12-foot box trucks that will be parking there. “If people want to move out and sell their house and have a moving truck, it will be parked out there and they can just rent it out,” Dovlatyan …
Mike Panico
8:00 pm on Saturday, April 6, 2013
Ed Dantes what's your point? The mayor doesn't appoint anyone to the board of adjustment. It's all council appointments more ›