PARK RIDGE, N.J.—Almost five months after a 185-unit multifamily development was approved by Montvale’s Planning Board in July—including 37 affordable units—the developer is seeking approval from Park Ridge’s Zoning Board of Adjustment to construct a driveway to the buildings through the former Sony property located in Park Ridge.
Editor’s note: Originally scheduled for Nov. 26, which we reported in our print edition, Park Ridge Zoning Board Secretary Tonya Tardibuono told Pascack Press Nov. 25 that the applicant requested the hearing be postponed until Tuesday, Dec. 17, due to engineering questions or concerns that they want to have resolved.
The application for an access road was initially submitted in December 2018 but was postponed by the applicant as it sought approval before Montvale Planning Board for the new 185-unit complex in Montvale.
Another likely factor complicating—and potentially influencing the application—is Hornrock Properties’ role as intervenor in litigation between Fair Share Housing Center and Park Ridge that is contesting the borough’s affordable housing settlement plan.
Hornrock contends its proposal to build 972 multifamily housing units on 30 acres comprising the former Sony site in Park Ridge would assist the borough in meeting its “unmet need” for such housing.
The borough opposes such development, citing site environmental constraints and contending the proposal constitutes high-density overdevelopment.
A case conference before Superior Court Judge Gregg Padovano to set a trial date to settle Park Ridge’s affordable housing obligations is scheduled for mid-December. An early 2020 trial date is anticipated.
Moreover, Park Ridge Mayor Keith Misciagna has consistently opposed high-density housing for the 30-acre former Sony site, making “fighting overdevelopment” a key part of his reelection campaign, while the borough has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees to fight Hornrock’s intervention in its affordable housing settlement.
Park Ridge sent attorney Carmine Alampi to every Montvale Planning Board hearing on the 185-unit inclusionary development to monitor and weigh in on Hornrock’s proposal.
Hornrock Properties is seeking use variance relief to permit the driveway use on the Park Ridge lot to support the approved multifamily use in Montvale, which was approved pending approval by Park Ridge for driveway access.
Also, Hornrock seeks a bulk variance to permit less than the number of parking spaces in Park Ridge to support the existing office building.
Following revisions which occurred over the last few months, it appears the applicant proposes to restrict use of the existing office building to 150,000 square feet so as to provide adequate parking on the Park Ridge side, per the approved parking ratio.
A number of revised documents submitted by Hornrock’s consultants were viewed Nov. 15 by Pascack Press. These included a preliminary site plan, traffic impact study, and stormwater management study.
All documents indicated revision dates of November 2019.
The traffic and stormwater studies presented highly technical analyses of the site’s former status as an office building and included new data which incorporated the new Montvale development into traffic and stormwater projections.
If hearings start Nov. 26 on the Hornrock application, it was unclear what experts might testify first for the developer.
One key focus is likely to be traffic impacts and an April 2019 memo from the police department questioned the number of trips estimated to be generated by a 185-unit development in Montvale, based on an applicant traffic study.
The memo, forwarded by Police Chief Joseph Madden, criticizes the traffic study and notes the 185 housing units were estimated to add 16 entering trips and 47 exit trips in the morning and add 49 entering trips and 31 exit trips in the evening versus the prior office use.
“Assuming most of the individuals residing in the complex will need to get to work each morning, and will return home each evening, coupled with the lack of transportation in the area, leads me to believe the number of trips each day will be above that indicated by the study,” wrote Lt. Peter Mauro.
Mauro said “the biggest issue” is likely to be the intersection of Brae Boulevard and Van Riper Lane/Lifetime [Fitness] driveway, as all cars related to the site will need to pass through there.
“In order to alleviate some of the congestion we should look at reinstalling the traffic light that was removed when Lifetime was constructed,” he wrote.
Much discord and legal wrangling has already occurred—during Park Ridge’s affordable settlement obligations in Superior Court—over Hornrock’s alleged lack of marketing the Sony site as an office use, which may affect its case for driveway-related variances.
Zoning Secretary Tonya Tardibuono told Pascack Press that no public re-notice of the upcoming hearing is required.