“GOLD STANDARD” – Township Attorney Lou Rainone said at the April 8 Township Council meeting that Franklin has become an example of how towns should plan for affordable housing. The Township will be obligated to provide for the construction of 659 more affordable housing units over the next 10 years, according to a settlement it reached with a builder industry …
Read More »Zoning Board Hears Plan To Convert Auto Repair Garage To Convenience Store
CONVERSION PROPOSAL – Manjit Bajwa answers question posed by his attorney during the April 3 Zoning Board of Adjustment hearing on his application. An application to covert an auto repair garage at Elizabeth and Cedar avenues into a small convenience center raised more questions than it provided answers at the April 3 Zoning Board of Adjustment meeting. The triangular-shaped property …
Read More »Historic Preservation Commission Approves Ukrainian Church Development That May Include Warehouse
PLAN DETAILS – Daniel Miola, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church engineer, explains the project to the Historic Preservation Advisory Commission on April 1. A plan to widen the driveway at the Ukrainian Reformed Church on Easton Avenue and add more parking spaces received a conditional Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Advisory Commission at its April 1 meeting. But that’s …
Read More »Warehouse Restrictions Purpose Of Master Plan Review, Ordinance Amendment
LEADING THE DISCUSSION – Mark Healey, the Township’s Principal Planner, at the March 26 Planning Board meeting,where a proposed Master Plan reexamination and BI Zone ordinance amendments were discussed. The Township cannot legally outright ban future warehouse development in Franklin, but officials hope actions that are planned for the next few months will give planners more control over where they …
Read More »State Assembly Committee Hears Of Franklin’s Warehouse Woes
FRANKLIN CONTINGENT – Sudhir Shah, Mahesh Muchhala, Deputy Mayor Shepa Uddin, state Assemblyman Joe Danielsen,Mayor Phil Kramer, Jan Brant, Eleanor Ogin, and Roz Sherman (left to right) after the Assembly Public Safety and Preparedness Committee hearing on warehouse proliferation in the state. A contingent of Franklin residents – including Township officials – converged in Trenton on March 20 to offer …
Read More »Reducing Lanes On Part Of Hamilton And Home Streets Among Planned Safety Improvements
PROJECT EXPLAINED – Bruce Klein of T&M Associates, speaks about the proposed improvements to a 1.7-mile stretch of Hamilton Street on March 12. Reducing the number of lanes on part of Hamilton Street from four to three, and making Home Street a one-lane street to ease turns onto Hamilton, were two of the many safety improvements to part of Hamilton …
Read More »Planning Board Approves Two Warehouses Off Veronica Avenue
TRAFFIC TALK – Matthew Seckler, the traffic engineer for a two-warehouse project on Veronica Avenue, testifies to the Planning Board at the March 5 hearing. Two warehouses measuring 75,000 square feet each were approved by the Planning Board for a tract of land on Veronica Avenue on March 5. The two warehouses will be located on a 17-acre site next …
Read More »Proposed Apartment Building Given Preliminary OK By Planning Board
NOT PERSUADED – Planning Board Chairman Michael Orsini was not convinced that the Board should vote on final site plan approval for a proposed three-story mixed use building on Hamilton Street. A three-story mixed-used building targeted for Hamilton Street was given preliminary approval by the Planning Board at its February 19 meeting. The building, planned for a half-acre parcel between …
Read More »Township HOA Wins Approval To Not Install Community Garden In Development
GOING TO BAT FOR HOA – Paul Schneier, a principal with Fleet Franklin, testifies at the February 7 Zoning Board of Adjustment hearing. A township homeowners’ association was given permission by the Zoning Board of Adjustment on February 6 to not build a part of its development included in its 2019 approval. The permission came in the form of a …
Read More »Revised Warehouse Plan Gets Cool Planning Board Reception
MAKING HIS CASE – Keith Cahill, the project engineer for Onyx 789, makes a point during the January 15 Planning Board hearing. A revised plan to build a 91,000-square-foot warehouse on a tract of land between New Brunswick and Old New Brunswick roads received a chilly reception January 15 from the Planning Board. The new plan represents an attempt by …
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