ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEET
FEBRUARY 19, 2003
The Regular
Meeting of the Wall Township Board of Adjustment was called to order by Mrs.
Morrissey at 7:45 P.M. Members present were
Wilma Morrissey, Anthony Rembiszewski, James Gray, first alternate Robert Kerr,
second alternate Wayne Palmer, Attorney Hirsch, Recording Secretary Betty
Schinestuhl, Planning Coordinator Roberta Lang, Engineer Glenn Gerken and
Reporter Arnone.
SALUTE TO THE FLAG
Attorney Hirsch
announced the only application for this evening is BP/Amoco. The Board has already accepted service.
Attorney Hirsch
stated the Board has only five members but the Board does have a quorum. The applicant does want to proceed. They do not want a vote tonight. They want a full Board for a vote. The Board will carry this application. The members that are absent must read the
transcripts to be able to vote.
CASE #BA29-2002
– Date application
complete: August 14, 2002. Carried from November 5, 2002 and December
18, 2002.
APPLICANT: B.P. PRODUCTS NORTH AMERICA, INC.
PROPERTY: Route 71 and 18th Avenue,
Block 12, Lots 1, 2 & 3. HB-20 zone
RELIEF
REQUESTED: Bulk, Use,
Site
Philip San
Filippo, Esq. appeared for the applicant.
Attorney San
Filippo said Mr. Spalt is here this evening because some property owners wanted
to ask him some questions and there are new members on the Board that may also want
to ask him some questions.
Attorney San
Filippo asked the new Board members if they have read the transcripts. Mr. Rembiszewski, Mr. Kerr and Mr. Palmer
have read them.
Mr. Spalt said
he had a colored rendering showing additional plantings on Camp Meeting
Street.
Entered into
evidence:
A-12 Colored rendering showing additional
landscaping
A-13 Revised A-5 (cross section)
February 19,
2003 Page
2
Mr. Spalt said
the colored rendering shows the landscape enhancement. Evergreen and lower growing shrubs have been
added. These will be behind the BP
building.
Mr. Spalt
explained A-13 illustrats the elevation.
Attorney Hirsch
asked if the plantings at the rear are new.
Mr. Spalt said some are existing and some are proposed.
Attorney Hirsch
asked for the height of the trees. Mr.
Spalt said 6’ – 7’ at time of planting.
Attorney Hirsch
asked about the homes across the street.
Mr. Spalt said there are single story and two story level homes.
8:00 P.M. Mr.
Cinelli arrived.
Mr. Spalt said
he had a photo of an actual BP dispenser showing the signage. There is a total of 6 s.f. for all six dispensers. Mr. Spalt also stated a 3 s.f. sign
displaying the price of gas will be on each pump. Mr. Gray asked if that was the signage total. Mr. Spalt said no. Mr. Kerr asked if there would be additional signage on the
pumps. Mr. Spalt said no.
The public had
no questions for Mr. Spalt.
Joseph Staigar,
Traffic Engineer, gave his credentials which were accepted by the Board.
Mr. Staigar said
he is familiar with the site and the improvements. He did a traffic study.
He said he compared the existing traffic conditions and the anticipated
traffic if the gas station were to be built.
Attorney San
Filippo said the traffic study was submitted to the Board.
Mr. Staigar said
people having to stop for gas consider it a nuisance. They either stop on their way to work or on their way home. They may also stop when they are out doing
errands. They do not usually make a
special trip just to purchase gas.
Mr. Staigar said
peak hours are during 8:00 and 9:00 A.M. and 4:15 and 5:15 P.M. Mr. Staigar said the level of service at the
intersection now ranges from A to C.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if the State or County planned on altering this
intersection. Mr. Staigar said no.
Mr. Staigar said
the traffic studies were done on average days.
Attorney San Filippo asked if traffic from churches, schools, etc. were
taken into consideration. Mr. Staigar
said yes.
Mr. Staigar said
approximately 66 customers will enter the site during the morning peak hours
and approximately 87 cars will enter the site during evening peak hours.
February 19,
2003 Page
3
Attorney San
Filippo asked if the cars entering the site are there for gas only or also for
the convenience store. Mr. Staigar said
there are a few type of trips: gas only (that is the predominate trip), the
purchase of gas and items from the convenience store, purchase only at the
convenience store and a small number of drivers will stop just to use the
restroom.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if the availability of being able to sit at a table at the
convenience store have an impact. Mr.
Staigar said no, on occasion they may sit for a few minutes and the parking
spaces may be occupied for a few minutes longer.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if the station will attract any new traffic. Mr. Staigar said the predominant flow will
be from the existing stream of traffic.
This site will not attract additional traffic from out of the area. If it is not convenient for customers to
stop they will not stop. The traffic
will continue to be the same if this project is built or not.
Mr. Cinelli
asked when the traffic studies were done.
Mr. Staigar said they were done in phases, in November 2001 and lastly
in December 2002.
Mr. Cinelli
asked if any studies were done during the summer months. Mr. Staigar said they were taken in
November. He said the DOT was contacted
to obtain summer month figures. DOT
hours were factored in. Peak hours stay
the same with the exception of Friday evenings and Monday mornings. In Wall Township there is about a 40%
increase in daily traffic during the summer.
Mr. Staigar said on Friday nights in the summer levels of service for 18th
Avenue, during PM hours, will be higher. Mr. Staigar said the overall traffic will operate at a level C or
better. During peak hours in the summer
months Route 71 north operates at a D level, Route 71 south operates at a B
level and 18th Avenue in both directions operate at an F level.
Mr. Cinelli
asked if Mr. Staigar has done any studies in the area from May through
September. Mr. Staigar said yes,
Wildwood, etc.
Mrs. Morrissey
asked what the counts were before 8:00 A.M. and after 5:00 P.M. Mr. Staigar said they were lower.
Mr. Rembiszewski
asked if the attendant pumping gas is the same person that is taking care of
the convenience store. Mr. Staigar said
no when you do that your coffee smells like gas. There will be dedicated employees inside and outside. The employee pumping gas will not be working
in the convenience store.
Attorney San
Filippo said there will be five employees on site, two in the store and three
outside. They would not intermingle.
Mr. Palmer asked
how many days Mr. Staigar visited this location. Mr. Staigar said half dozen, maybe eight times. Mr. Palmer asked for the exact dates. Mr. Staigar said he did not know the exact
dates. Attorney San Filippo asked if
any of those visits were made during the summer. Mr. Staigar said yes.
February 19,
2003 Page
4
Mr. Gray said
the traffic counts were done two days in November 2001. The counts would be higher in the
summer. Mr. Staigar said the more
traffic you have on 18th Avenue and Route 71 the more traffic there
will be at the site.
Mr. Staigar
explained if the station drops the prices you will get more customers or they
may raise the price a penny or two so it will all balance out. Mr. Gray said so the number could be more
than 88 and 66. Mr. Staigar said yes
but just on Friday evenings and Monday mornings.
Attorney Hirsch
asked if there would be traffic from Route 35.
Mr. Staigar said that would be a minor amount. He said his opinion would be different if this was a WAWA.
Attorney Hirsch
asked if Mr. Staigar took into account the gas stations in the area. Mr. Staigar said no.
Attorney Hirsch
asked if Mr. Staigar took into account the Belmar Marina. Mr. Staigar said they did not take that into
account specifically but they did take into account the summer traffic.
Mrs. Morrissey
asked if Mr. Staigar responded to all the review letters from Schoor
DePalma. Mr. Staigar said he sent a
response letter and dealt with all the items in the letter.
Attorney San
Filippo asked Mr. Staigar how long will it take for the station to be
built. Mr. Staigar said it can be built
within one year.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if there were any BP stations in the shore area. Mr. Staigar said there is one on Route
130. Mr. Gray asked Mr. Staigar if the
Route 130 station is the same as the one proposed on Route 71. Mr. Staigar said no, they are
comparable. Mr. Gray said the Route 71
station is in a neighborhood. He asked
if they had a BP station in a neighborhood.
Mr. Staigar said the Route 130 is most comparable.
Attorney San
Filippo said the driveway aprons on 18th Avenue has been designed
with Monmouth County Planning Board regulations.
Mr. Staigar said
there will be no left turns into the site.
The no left turn into the site will have a diminishing effect. Some people will not use the site because it
is difficult to get in and out.
Attorney San Filippo
asked if the site on Route 71 complies with NJDOT regulations. Mr. Spalt said yes.
Attorney San
Filippo asked how customers would go north.
Mr. Staigar said they would go out the 18th Avenue access.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if a tanker is on site will the station be able to run. Mr. Staigar said they can schedule gas
deliveries during off peak hours.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if the deliveries can be restricted from delivery during late
hours and early morning hours. Mr.
Staigar said yes.
February 19,
2003 Page
5
Attorney San
Filippo asked about circulation on site.
Mr. Staigar said all aisle space is more than adequate.
Attorney San
Filippo asked about the loading waiver.
Mr. Staigar said one is not needed because it is a small convenience
store and they have small inventory.
Deliveries will be made by step vans and they will fit into a regular
parking space.
Attorney San
Filippo asked about parking. Mr.
Staigar said there is more than adequate parking.
Mr. Staigar said
this site is very well laid out.
Mr. Staigar said
this site will not cause a negative impact on the roadway.
Attorney San
Filippo asked Mr. Staigar to review the reports from Schoor DePalma. Mr. Staigar said he has reviewed the reports
and addressed a letter to Schoor DePalma dated December 16, 2002.
Mr. Staigar said
BP has received Monmouth County approval for this site.
Mr. Cinelli
asked about the C and F grading. Mr.
Staigar said C is better. He said
during the summer 18th Avenue is an F on Friday evenings. During the summer months Route 71 north will
be a D but remains at B southbound. He
said Route 71 is a B northbound and a B southbound during non summer
months. During the PM peak hour’s 18th
Avenue level will be a C during non summer months.
Mr. Gray said he
is concerned about headlights shining into people’s homes on Elm Street. He said traffic backs up in the winter time and
it will be worse in the summer. Mr.
Staigar said it is light until 8:00 P.M. during the summer. He said he did not analyze non-peak hours.
Mr. Gray asked
where the signs “No Turn” are on 18th Avenue. Mr. Staigar said on the side facing out onto
18th Avenue. There will also
be “Do No Enter” signs on both sides of 18th Avenue.
9:15 P.M. the
Board recessed.
9:30 P.M. the
meeting resumed.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if this application was for a restaurant or a food market would
it be any different than what is proposed.
Mr. Staigar said traffic would remain the same. Attorney San Filippo said DOT would have the
same type of restrictions. Mr. Staigar
agreed.
Attorney San
Filippo asked if anything could be done to screen the headlights facing Elm
Street. Mr. Staigar said they could
screen Elm Street with evergreens, etc.
Attorney San
Filippo asked Mr. Staigar if he reviewed Mr. Rizzitello’s letter of August 20,
2002. Mr. Staigar said he has reviewed
the letter and the applicant will comply.
February 19,
2003 Page
6
Mrs. Morrissey
asked if there were any fire hydrants proposed on site. Mr. Staigar said no. There is one directly across from the
driveway on 18th Avenue.
Diane Hurley,
1723 Elm Street, asked if cigarettes would be sold at the convenience
store. Mr. Staigar said yes. Ms. Hurley said there will be people going
into the store just to buy those. There
are several young children on Elm Street and they are driven to school. She asked if this site would affect parents
getting in and out of 18th Avenue.
Mr. Staigar said there will be a minimum effect. Mr. Staigar explained the Route 71 traffic
light gets more green time than 18th Avenue. He said driving on 18th Avenue
would be easier if the road was given a long green light. The State is very reluctant to reduce the
green light on a state highway.
Ms. Hurley said
the site will be open 24 hours a day.
She said there are a lot of bars in Belmar. She asked if any studies were done regarding traffic coming from
the bars. Mr. Staigar said no.
Ms. Hurley said
the street is very narrow and garbage trucks come in and back straight out onto
18th Avenue onto the site. She
asked if they will still be able to continue to do that. Mr. Staigar said he didn’t see why they
couldn’t make a turn onto 18th Avenue. He said they should not be backing up onto private property.
William Everett,
1815 Camp Meeting Street, asked if Camp Meeting Street was included in the
traffic study. Mr. Staigar said
no.
Mr. Everett
asked if a study was done with people parking on Camp Meeting Street and
walking to the convenience store. Mr.
Staigar said no but he feels that is highly unlikely because there is adequate
parking at the store.
There were no
more questions for Mr. Staigar.
Paul Grygiel,
Planner, was sworn. Mr. Grygiel gave
his credentials which were accepted by the Board.
Mr. Grygiel said
he was hired by BP to review the application from a planning perspective. He said he inspected the site and the
surrounding area. He has reviewed the
Master Plan and zoning ordinances. Mr.
Grygiel said Route 71 is zoned for both commercial and residential. There are a number of vacant lots on Route
71. 18th Avenue has some
commercial lots to the west as well as some residential lots.
Mr. Grygiel said
he is familiar with the West Belmar Gateway project. He said coffee shops, video stores and newsstands were included
in the project. Gas stations were not
included although convenience stores were.
Mr. Grygiel said
after viewing what is on the property now the variances sort can be granted
according to Municipal Land Use Law. He
explained the variances requested.
Variance is needed for combination gas station and convenience
store. This is not permitted in the
HB-20 zone. Bulk variances are also
being sort.
February 19,
2003 Page
7
Mr. Grygiel said
the property is unique. It is located
on three streets, two major roads.
There is a signal at the intersection.
One of the streets is a state highway.
The site provides two means of ingress and egress. The sight is highly visible. There will be no negative impact because of
this use. The proposed building will be
attractive. The driveway will be
improved. Landscaping is being
proposed. There is no other gas station
– convenience stores in the area.
Attorney San
Filippo asked Mr. Grygiel if he felt there was any negative criteria. Mr. Grygiel said there will be no
substantial detriment to the area. It
would be an improvement over what exists.
There is adequate space for parking.
The building will be setback from the main roadway. There is adequate distance between the
building and the streets. Fuel
dispensers face Route 71 and away from Camp Meeting Street. This application will have no detriment to
the Master Plan. The applicant has
listened to some of the comments made and they have reduced the size and added
landscaping.
Mr. Grygiel said
a front yard setback variance is sort because 50’ is required where 28.5’ is
proposed. There are three front
yards. There will be no activity on
Camp Meeting Street and adequate landscaping will be provided.
Mr. Grygiel said
the bulk variances requested, such as, location of accessory structure, front
yard setbacks and canopy in the front of the convenience store are all needed
because of the property having frontage on three streets. There is only a small area that is not a
front yard. The building is at least
50’ back from the street. The trash
enclosure is away from the street and residential properties.
Mr. Grygiel said
the loading space variance requested is because one space is required and none are
being proposed. A loading space is not
warranted.
Mr. Grygiel said
a sign variance is being requested. One
building sign is permitted and three are being proposed on the store, also, for
the size of the sign. The total signage
proposed is less than 150 s.f. The
applicant has broken down the size of the signs into smaller signs. The signs will be set back from the
street.
Mr. Grygiel said
there is no negative criteria. There is
no substantial detriment to the public good or Master Plan.
Mr. Cinelli
asked if Mr. Grygiel would put 18th Avenue on the same level as
Route 71. Mr. Grygiel said no, Route 71
would get more traffic.
Mr. Cinelli said
gas stations are not in the same category as the items listed in the West
Belmar Gateway Project report.
Restaurants, video stores, etc. would not be open 24 hours a day. Mr. Cinelli was concerned about the noise. Mr. Staigar said state regulations say 65
decibels is allowed during the day and 50 decibels is allowed between 10:00
P.M. and 7:00 A.M. Mr. Staigar
explained the vacuum will not be a problem.
The air machine would have to be moved to drop it down to 50
decibels. It would have to be relocated
from the southwest corner to closer to the roadway. He said they will comply with state standards.
February 19,
2003 Page
8
Mr. Gray asked
how that will affect the people across the street. Mr. Staigar said homes on Route 71 already exceed the decibel
levels at night.
Mrs. Morrissey
asked what kind of noise does the garbage pick up make and how many times a
week would they pick up. Mr. Staigar
said three times a week.
Mr. Kerr asked
if the site would have an ATM machine.
Attorney San Filippo said yes inside the convenience store.
Attorney Hirsch
asked if the applicant would be willing to accept a condition of approval limiting
the hours of operation, maybe, to close at 10:00 or 11:00 P.M. He asked Attorney San Filippo if that was a
condition of approval would the applicant still want to go forward. Attorney San Filippo said yes.
Mrs. Morrissey
said the application will be carried to April 2, 2003. Attorney San Filippo gave an extension of
time. Attorney Hirsch said no further
noticing is needed.
There being no
further business to come before the Board, a motion was made, seconded, and
unanimously approved to adjourn the meeting at 10:32 P.M.
Respectfully
submitted,
Betty Schinestuhl
Recording
Secretary