MANVILLE: Car auction expanding lot — but not at mall site

By Audrey Levine, Staff Writer
   Rumors that Adesa New Jersey, on North Main Street, is planning to store many of its vehicles on the Rustic Mall site are untrue, according to Borough Administrator Gary Garwacke.
   The question came up during the borough’s visioning workshop Tuesday, the first of two planned workshops, which was held as part of the state-mandated Plan Endorsement Process to reaffirm its Town Center designation.
   Mr. Garwacke said at the meeting that there are no plans for Adesa to build a car lot on the Rustic Mall property, despite concerns from residents about this possibility. Although Mr. Garwacke said parking lots are an option for the mall, which is zoned for mixed-use development, this particular type of storage lot is not being planned.
   Several residents were concerned the lot will remain empty and an “albatross” for the town, as the borough and property owners wait for documents from the Environmental Protection Agency following the cleanup of creosote-contaminated oil there.
   ”We have to move forward with the property,” said Oscar Gonzalez, owner of Discount Mattress and Furniture, on South Main Street.
   Jamie Sunyak, site planner with appointed borough planner CMX Engineering, said the mall site can be used for commercial space, residential properties, a community center, parking and other uses.
   ”It will serve as a major presence as far as the revitalization (of the town) goes,” she said.
   Mr. Gonzalez questioned whether the borough could seize the property from the current owner and sell it to another developer, unfortunately, that would cost the borough to take over such a large block of land.
   As for Adesa’s plans, according to Doug Shore, its regional business manager, the company hopes to create a lot to store vehicles on its current property, on North Main Street.
   ”We have a majority of our cars there,” he said, “and we have some property by the movie theater.”
   At this point, Mr. Shore said, the property owned by Adesa is not yet paved for parking cars, so, until that step is complete, the company hopes to store vehicles in an industrial lot on Roycefield Road in Hillsborough.
   ”We have excessive inventory, and this is just storage,” he said. “This space (in Hillsborough) was available, and is fairly close to our property (in Manville). We want to minimize the travel between the two locations.”
   Representatives from Adesa were scheduled to go before the Hillsborough Board of Adjustment Wednesday to request a use variance for permission for a temporary vehicle storage lot for cars that will be auctioned off.
   If approved by the Board of Adjustment, the plan will include a lease agreement of the property for one year with the right to extend if the storage area in Manville is not completely paved.
   ”At this point, we have discussed doing the paving later this year,” Mr. Shore said.
   As for the paving of the space in Manville, Mr. Garwacke said he has not seen any official word on the project, and it has not yet been presented to the Planning Board.
   ”No plans have been submitted yet,” he said.
   Representatives from Adesa New Jersey did not return requests for comment.