Honda eyeing Route 130 location

Some East Windsor residents are concerned about the effects of a proposed car dealership moving into the township.

By: Lauren Burgoon
   EAST WINDSOR — A proposed car dealership on Route 130 has a neighborhood of homeowners worried about the impact on their quality of life, property values and the environment.
   Allstar Motors of L.I. has submitted plans for a 31,000-square- foot Honda dealership, service department and parking for 529 vehicles on more than 8 acres that faces Route 130 South. The dealership would be lie between Dutch Neck Road and Maple Stream Road.
   Residents of The Grand at East Windsor development, who live behind the site, are upset about the proximity of the proposed dealership. They said the plans will create a sea of cars abutting their back yards.
   "My house is about 100 feet from where all of these cars will be parked," Richard Masone of Pierce Road said. "Some of our neighbors will only have 20 to 25 feet between the parking spaces and their houses."
   Township Planner Richard Coppola of Coppola & Coppola Associates in Princeton Junction said a 25-foot landscaped buffer zone is required between commercial and residential properties according to municipal land use law.
   Mr. Coppola said Allstar Motors must apply for a variance if any of the buffer zones fall below the required level. Plans show a varying buffer zone of 15 to 25 feet along the rear property line of the dealership and planned parking spaces.
   East Windsor Mayor (and Planning Board member) Janice Mironov said she could not comment specifically on the Allstar Motors plan, but said, "Any variance has to be justified before the Planning Board."
   Mr. Masone said current plans will do nothing to conceal the neighborhood’s view of the lot and dealership. He also is concerned about the potential lighting and noise from the dealership.
   "This plan removes a lot of trees that act as a buffer to traffic noise from Route 130 now," he said.
   He added that a dealership public address system with speakers would increase the noise throughout the neighborhood, although it is not certain that any such system will be installed.
   John Cesard, also of Pierce Road, said the dealership plans will harm the animal life around the site. Currently the property is approximately split between an open field and woods.
   "There is a tremendous amount of wildlife. We’ve seen foxes, turtles, deer, groundhogs and a lot of other types of animals around here," Mr. Cesard said. "There is also a pond with fish in it. The environmental report says it’s not a big deal because there aren’t a lot of animals around here, but they’re wrong."
   The environmental impact statement for the site said there was "limited wildlife observed during onsite investigations" that would be able to survive in surrounding areas if the dealership is built.
   The report also claimed that the pond on the site was standing water and did not support fish.
   "This site is not suited for aquatic organisms to live. The only area of this site that could contain such organisms would be within the man-made irrigation pond. . . It is not expected that any type of fish are present within this pond as there is no inflow or outflow that is constant for this pond," the statement read.
   "That is definitely wrong. I know for a fact that the pond is fed from an underground source," Mr. Masone said.
   Mr. Masone produced several pictures of animals on the site, including deer grazing in the field and backyards and a turtle from the pond. Another picture showed him and his two young daughters displaying fish they caught from the pond.
   Allstar Motors has submitted a letter to the state Department of Environmental Protection asking that the pond be classified as state open waters, according to the impact report. The report said this classification is likely because there is no visible inflow or exit flow. If the pond were classified as open waters, the owners of the dealership would not be required to create a buffer zone around the pond to protect it or any wildlife it supports. Such a move would nullify the wetlands classification and protection the area received in 1996, according to Mr. Masone.
   The environmental impact statement also addressed the positive impact the dealership would have on the township. It said the dealership would create jobs in East Windsor without affecting taxes. According to the report, there would not be any negative impact on recreational or cultural aspects in the township since the property is not used for anything now. It also stated that the plans are well suited to the property "in size and nature" and "the impacts to the environment and infrastructure are expected to be negligible."
   Homeowners in the upscale neighborhood whose properties are within 200 feet of the proposed dealership were notified of the plans and a scheduled public hearing about the issue in a letter dated Feb. 12. The letter spurred Mr. Masone and his wife, Sue, into action. They reached out to their neighbors to discuss the plans and the residents held an impromptu meeting at the Masones’ home last week.
   "Right now we just want to know what’s going on and we’d like some explanations," Ms. Masone said.
   One of the concerns raised at the meeting was potential harm to property values. Homes in the development are valued between $250,000 and $450,000 for tax assessments but are selling for $450,000 and $650,000, according to Ms. Masone.
   "This is going to make my property values go way down," said one Pierce Road resident who did not want to be identified. "That’s my biggest concern right now."
   Mr. Masone also is worried.
   "We moved here from Staten Island in 1999 because the development was out of control there. I don’t want that to happen here," he said. "When the dealership goes up my property value will plummet no matter what anybody says. If I try to sell my house it will be a lot less attractive than a house across the development."
   An additional worry of Ms. Masone is the potential for flooding. She said a detention basin behind her house frequently overflows now. She is worried that additional runoff from the dealership will flood the basin and surrounding properties.
   The residents of the development turned out en masse to the public hearing before the Planning Board on Monday. A notice informed the group that the meeting was postponed an hour. When the meeting began at 9 p.m. Chairman Edward Kelley told the residents the board could not reach a quorum, the required number of members present to have an official meeting, until then. Given the delayed start time and the large number of people present, Mr. Kelley told the standing room only crowd that the hearing was postponed until April 19.
   Mayor Mironov said she is anxious to listen to the residents.
   "We’re always concerned about the residents comments. They will be fully heard and taken into account in deliberations," she said.
   The Masones had come to the meeting with a list of concerns and questions ready for the Planning Board and any representatives of the dealership. The list included several requests that were suggested during the residential meeting.
   Among them, the homeowners plan to ask for at least a 25-foot buffer zone between the dealership and properties and a berm, or a large hill, installed with fast-growing trees that would obstruct the homeowner’s views of the parking lot. Another suggestion was to abolish a 15-foot buffer zone at the front of the dealership so the residents could have additional space between their properties and the lot.
   "It’s not that so much that we are against the Honda dealership, it’s a matter of how close it is," Mr. Masone said. "Plus there is tons of open space in East Windsor. Why can’t they go somewhere else where they can expand in a few years if they want to? There’s no room for them to ever expand here."
   Henry Kent-Smith, a Princeton-based attorney representing Allstar Motors for the Planning Board application, said he wants to work with the residents.
   "It’s not uncommon to have residents concerned. Change is a difficult thing when people are accustomed to their environment," he said. "We’re very committed to doing the right thing and working with the residents in cooperation. My client is ready, willing and able to meet with the residents and to talk about providing berms, hills and buffer trees where none are today. We plan to make a positive impact on their living experience and on the township."
   The Masones and several other residents said they look forward to a dialogue with the dealership representatives. They said they want questions answered and would like the two groups to work together for a compromise that would satisfy both sides.
   "If it wasn’t in my back yard, that would be ideal," Mr. Masone said. "But if it has to be here we just want some issues addressed."
   The Masones plan to hold another neighborhood meeting before the public hearing in April.