Township planners approve dental office

Complex will be set on Franklin Corner Road.

By: Lea Kahn
   Township planners gave the green light Monday night to a dentist’s plans to remodel and expand a two-story house at 51 Franklin Corner Road, at the corner of Mill Road, into new offices for Lawrenceville Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery .
   The Planning Board granted preliminary and final site plan approval to Dr. Earl Cubbage’s proposal to construct a 1,634-square-foot addition to the existing 1,933-square-foot house. There will be parking for 14 cars. The entrance would be off Mill Road.
   Dr. Cubbage’s practice involves facial reconstruction and tooth implants. It includes cosmetic surgery of the face, such as that which would be required following an accident. His practice currently is located at 3100 Princeton Pike.
   The one-story addition would span the front of the house and wrap along the north side. Steps have been taken to design the addition so that it would avoid a large maple tree in the rear yard, said engineer Frank Falcone. A cherry tree in the rear yard also would be saved, he said.
   The addition would contain office space, including the business office and the dentist’s office, plus a waiting room, a staff lounge and four operating areas. Patients would enter through the waiting room and then travel across the front of the addition to the operating areas.
   Dr. Cubbage said his practice requires 2,500 square feet of space. The one-story addition — including the existing first floor of the house — totals 2,600 square feet. The second story of the house would be used for storage. It is not possible to use the second story for his practice because the patients are anesthetized and they could not safely maneuver the steps, he added.
   Dr. Cubbage said he wanted to preserve the house. The addition was designed so that it would not disturb the character of the house, which was built about 90 years ago, he said. He plans to retain the existing doors and trim inside the house.
   Architect George Pearson said he designed the addition so that the building would retain a residential look. The addition on the north side of the house has a peaked roof, so that it would look like a typical family room addition, he said.
   Although Township Planning Consultant Philip Caton praised Mr. Pearson’s design, Planning Board members had little comment and approved Dr. Cubbage’s application.