City of Montclair Township

Chair Wynn called the meeting to order at 7:40 pm and announced that the meeting has been properly noticed in accordance with the Open Public Meetings Act and that the meeting is being recorded and can be viewed on the Township website or on Channel 34. 

Chair Wynn, Vice Chair Brodock, Mr. Cook, Mr. Schwartz, Ms. Willis, Mr. Rooney, Mr. Ianuale, Ms. Loughman, and Mr. Gilmer were present.   Board Attorney Arthur Neiss, Board Engineer Joseph Vuich and Planning Director Janice Talley were also present.  Councilor Schlager and Mr. Barr were excused.

A motion to approve the minutes from the May 20, 2019 meeting as amended was made by Chair Wynn, seconded by Vice Chair Brodock and approved unanimously.

Chair Wynn announced that Application 2566:  59 Glenridge Avenue, LLC – 59-61 Glenridge Avenue (Block 4210, Lot 23) has been carried to the July 8, 2019 meeting.   He also announced that Application 2608:  GaRE Venture Mtc Bloom, LLC – 467- 469 Bloomfield Avenue (Block 3201, Lot 1) has been carried to the June 24, 2019 meeting.

Township Attorney Ira Karasick presented the proposed ordinance to the Board.  The ordinance was introduced by the Council on May 7, 2019 to establish new procedures for demolition of historic structures.  The ordinance establishes new requirements for total demolition of any structure identified in the Historic Preservation Element of the Master Plan, which includes about 5,000 properties.  The ordinance requires submission of a demolition application to the Historic Preservation Commission for any application to totally demolish a historic structure.  The Historic Preservation Commission may approve or deny the applications.  Any denial of an application can be appealed to the Zoning Board of Adjustment.

Most Board members were satisfied with the intent of the proposed ordinance and that it is consistent with the Master Plan, but were concerned about the procedures.  Many Board members were concerned about the sheer number of properties affected by the ordinance and the lack of notice to property owners which does not provide the due process required of land use policies.   They were also concerned about the lack of objective criteria for evaluating demolition applications and stated that the new requirements are onerous and expensive for homeowners. 

The Board stated that the ordinance should include specific qualifications for the Historic Preservation Officer and establish a standard for archaeological surveys.  They also recommended that the online zoning map be combined with the historic resources inventory map so that the information is found in one place.  The Board also recommended that the list of affected properties be further reduced to be more equitable.  A motion to send a report to the Council that the proposed ordinance is consistent with the Master Plan, but with the stated comments, was made and Board members Wynn, Brodock, Schwartz, Cook, Willis, Rooney and Loughman voted in favor of the report and Board members Ianuale and Gilmer voted in opposition to the report. 

Ms. Talley informed the Board that they have 45 days to complete their review, which expires on June 21.  The Board requested an extension on the timeframe until June 25 to give them time to complete their comments at the June 24 Planning Board meeting.  If the extension is not granted, the Board asked that a special meeting be scheduled to complete their review.

The Board took a recess at 9:15 pm and returned at 9:23. 

Application 2606:  Adaline Moster Property LLC – 403-405 Bloomfield Avenue

The applicant was represented by Gerald Kelly, Esq.  Daniel Roma and Nino Spallacci were sworn in as the project architects.  Mr. Kelly stated that they have identified another issue regarding access to the parking area caused by the proposed Midtown parking deck, and as a result can only provide 3 onsite parking spaces and not 4.  Mr. Neiss stated that this will require the applicant to renotice if it does need a parking variance. Ms. Talley suggested that the applicant work with the Township to get approval to provide the fourth parking space partially on Township-owned land.  The applicant will meet with Township professionals to work out these details.

Board members requested that the mechanical equipment be placed on the third-floor roof of the structure on the Glenridge Avenue side of the building, allowing the terrace between the third floor and Bloomfield Avenue to be landscaped as a green roof.

The applicant was directed to meet with Township officials to work out the details regarding the parking deck and the application was carried to the July 9 meeting.

Payment of Bills

A motion to pay bills except for the May 23 bill from NV5 was made by Chair Wynn, seconded by Vice Chair Brodock and approved unanimously.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 9:45 pm.