application July 26
Borough Planning Board will hear
application July 26
BY GLORIA STRAVELLI
Staff Writer
The Olde Union House, (above) on Wharf Avenue in Red Bank, as pictured today. The 18th-century building (at right) was damaged in a fire in 1964. Architectural (below left) renderings of Union Street Village’s plans for the site.
RED BANK — The fate of one of the borough’s oldest landmarks will be decided by the Red Bank Planning Board, which will begin hearing an application to redevelop the site of the Olde Union House on July 26.
The application has the attention of Red Bank’s preservation community and the Red Bank Historic Preservation Commission issued a position paper on the development application this week.
"The associative value of this property to the community – as the site of an early tavern connected with Red Bank’s founding and early development – must be acknowledged as a fundamental part of the evaluation and treatment of this site," the commission states in the position paper distributed to planning board members.
The RBHPC is opposing the demolition of the two-story tavern building — whose origins date to 1791 — that is proposed in the development application filed by Union Street Village LLC.
Instead, the commission is arguing that the historic tavern building should be preserved and development should take place around and above it.
"It is recommended that the original two-story tavern structure remain as a whole and that the proposed Union Street Village structure be built around and adjacent to this building," the position paper states.
"The RBHPC understands the site’s historic importance and relationship to its streetscape," it reads. "By keeping the Union House, the historic experience is retained along Wharf Avenue reflecting the master plan’s assurance that Red Bank’s cultural history and historic places are preserved and remembered."
The applicant proposes to demolish the Olde Union House building and redevelop the site as a mixed use, six-level building with a below-ground, two-level parking garage, 7,000 square feet of retail space at street level and eight condominium apartments on three upper floors.
Principals in Union Street Village are Neil Malloy, owner of the property at 11-13 Wharf Ave., and general contractor Timothy Hurst. The Olde Union House and Hip Town Grill — operated on the site by Malloy and his wife — have closed.
The tavern building was heavily damaged in a 1964 fire and the developers contend that analysis by experts shows that not enough of the original structure remains after reconstruction to qualify it for historic status.
As originally submitted, the application would have required approval by the borough Zoning Board of Adjustment because it sought "d," or use, variances.
Applications involving a "d" variance need affirmative votes by five of the seven voting board members for approval.
According to the borough Planning and Zoning Office, the revised application eliminates the "d" variances and currently seeks approval for several "c" variances, putting it within the jurisdiction of the Planning Board where a majority of affirmative votes are needed for approval.
The current application seeks "c" variances, including height, front yard setback, signage, parking, and landscape buffering. In addition, the application requires design waivers pertaining to regulations governing multifamily dwellings including front, side, and rear yard setbacks, passive recreation and ratio of two-bedroom units.
The RBHPC argues that granting the numerous bulk variances sought "would severely compromise the goals of the Master Plan with respect to preserving Red Bank’s special character.
"The variances and waivers," it says, "would be substantially detrimental to the public good and significantly undermine the properties within the CCD Historic District."
In its position paper, the commission notes that a tavern has operated at the Olde Union House site for almost 200 years.
Originally known as the Atkins Tavern, then the Union Hotel, the tavern building underwent several additions, exterior and interior changes and a major fire in 1964 that heavily damaged the structure and resulted in its reconstruction.
The RBHPC maintains that portions of the original structure survived the fire and remain intact today.
"The tavern that stands today, although largely a 1964 building, retains sections of early foundation including the original sill plate and the footprint, two-story gabled form, and design features of the older structure," according to the position paper which was the combined effort of commission members.
The commission concurs with the findings of consultants for the developer that the building falls short of meeting standards for listing on the National Register of Historic places, but argues that it contributes to the status of the borough’s Historic District.
"The commission contends that the property has preservation value as a contributing structure to the overall district …" the paper states. "Most of the structures within the Broad Street Historic District would not be individually eligible … for the National Register, but the sum of the Historic District’s buildings is greater than its individual parts.
"The Union House on Wharf Avenue is truly situated at the birthplace of Red Bank," the position paper states. "The building is a significant link to our history and must be retained as a critical part of the historic district for the town."