Jain Center Wins Planning Board Approval For Driveway Arch
It took about eight months, but the Jain Center on Cedar Grove Lane won approval for a proposed driveway arch at the February 7 Planning Board meeting. The biggest stumbling block of the application – whether the Center was obligated by prior Planning Board decisions to align the driveway with that of Cedar Grove Center […]
Jain Center Walks Away From Planning Board Empty Handed, Again
Representatives of a township temple were once again unsuccessful January 3 in getting Planning Board approvals for a decorative archway planned for the temple’s driveway on Cedar Grove Lane. The difficulty arose when some Planning Board members asserted that years’-old approvals for the Jain Center included a stipulation that they must align their driveway with […]
It’s Back: Levin Resubmits Apartment Building Plan For Rutgers Plaza
The Levin Company has resubmitted its plan to turn the former Big Kmart building into a 200-unit apartment building. Plans were submitted to the Township on December 13. The plans are essentially identical to a submission made in November 2021. Those plans were met with stiff opposition from Township officials and residents. Levin wants to […]
Marconi Park Refurbishment Stopped; Needed Permissions Never Granted
Work has been stopped on the refurbishment of the Guglielmo Marconi Memorial Park on John F. Kennedy Boulevard after it was discovered that Somerset County had not approved the project, nor had any of the necessary Township permits been issued. The County needs to approve the project because the park borders Easton Avenue and is […]
New Home, ‘Financial Subdivision,’ Approved By Zoning Board
Applications to build a single-family home on Battle Place and for a “financial” subdivision off DeMott Lane were approved December 7 by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. Venkateswar and Padmaja Vakkalagadda applied to the Board to build a single-family home on a corner vacant lot at 76 Battle Place. The lot is undersized, so the […]
L’Oreal Plan For Building Expansion Sent Back To Drawing Board
Representatives of L’Oreal USA were sent back to their drafting table by the Planning Board December 6, whose members did not like the company’s plans for a more than 149,000-square-foot addition to their main building on Commerce Drive. The Board members’ main gripe was that the new addition would encroach on homes that abut the […]
Planned DeMott Lane-Easton Avenue Intersection Improvements Unveiled
Improvements designed to make the DeMott Lane-Easton Avenue intersection safer for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists were unveiled December 5 at the Township Council Chamber. The Public Information Session was hosted by representatives from the Somerset County Engineering Department, the state Department of Transportation and the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority. The project, for which there […]
South Middlebush Road Temple Site Sold For Planned 60,000 SF Islamic Center
Plans for a $15 million, 60,000-square-foot Islamic center – including a mosque, a boarding school, and a state-of-the-art gym – with 400 parking spaces are being laid by the new owners of a 16-acre tract on South Middlebush Road. The land, located next to Snyder’s Farm, was most recently the subject of a controversial 21,000-square-foot […]
Public Information Session To Discuss DeMott Lane/Easton Avenue Improvements
A Public Information Session to educate the public on proposed improvements to the DeMott Lane/Easton Avenue intersection has been set for 4:30-7 p.m. December 5 at the Township Municipal Building, 475 DeMott Lane. The proposed work includes “the reconstruction of the traffic signal equipment, curb, sidewalk, pavement, and median barrier in the vicinity of the […]
Strategy Session Set For Ask To Prohibit Trucks On County Roads
Township officials plan to put their heads together this week and strategize on how to ask Somerset County to decertify some County roads for truck traffic. The idea is the latest in a number of efforts to mitigate the effect Franklin’s burgeoning warehouse inventory is having on the township environment. The move to get the […]
