BY MAURA DOWGIN
Staff Writer
EDISON — A car service plans to expand and move into the Jet Messenger Service building on Ethel Road.
Wilner Livery Service has an application in front of the Planning Board which asks officials to approve a second-floor addition of approximately 1,500 square feet to the existing building, said James Landon, architect and planner for the applicant.
At the Dec. 15 board meeting, officials decided to carry the application without a vote because the drainage report was submitted late and was not properly reviewed by board professionals.
Officials said that the application is on the board’s agenda again for the first meeting in January.
Wilner has been operating in the township for the past 80 years, said Donna Jennings, attorney for the applicant.
The service currently leases a building on Oak Tree Road which is being sold, said Jonathan Wilner, vice president and general manager in charge of operations for the company.
"We’d like to remain in Edison," Wilner said. "We were looking for a property and found this."
The facility will expand the number of parking spaces to 46 spaces outside and 64 inside for a total of 110 spaces, Landon said.
The service’s hours of operations are 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, Wilner said.
The six office employees work from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., but limousines are available at any time day or night, he said. If a driver has a late-night assignment, he or she would normally take the limousine home instead of bringing it back to the office.
The night time traffic in the area will not drastically increase due to the office presence, the applicant said.
In addition to the office space, the car service would perform some repairs to the vehicles at the facility, Wilner said.
The limited body work performed at the facility would be more cosmetic than repairs made at a body work shop, Wilner said.
Board officials said that they will make it a condition of the application’s approval that there be no painting of cars at the facility because the plan does not call for a painting booth, said board member Hall "Ike" Eisenhauer.
Spray painting a car without a booth is illegal in New Jersey, Eisenhauer said.
The only noise from the facility that may affect the surrounding neighbors would be cars starting in the mornings, Wilner said.
The impact to the surrounding homes will be small, he added.