By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
The Zoning Board of Adjustment has rescheduled a public hearing to reconsider a controversial use variance application to locate a residential drug and alcohol detoxification center in an office park at 100 Federal City Road.
The zoning board will hear the Sunrise Detoxification Center’s application at its Nov. 14 meeting. It had been scheduled for the board’s Oct. 17 meeting, but it was postponed because one of the six zoning board members was unable to attend.
”The meeting was postponed so the zoning board could have the most possible number of members present. Only five members would have been able to attend, but the board has always had six members for this particular application,” said Brenda Kraemer, assistant municipal engineer.
This is the second public hearing on the application, which was denied by the Zoning Board of Adjustment in 2011. It was ordered to reconsider the application after the Sunrise Detoxification Center and the Simone Investment Group LLC, which owns the office park, successfully sued the zoning board and Lawrence Township in Mercer County Superior Court.
A use variance is needed because a residential drug and alcohol detoxification center in which clients are weaned off alcohol and drugs before being sent to other facilities for counseling is not a permitted use in the Professional Office zone. The zoning would permit an out-patient facility, however.
Although this is the second public hearing on the application, the zoning board has decided there would be no more public comment or testimony, no written submissions, no amendments or conditions offered by the applicant, and the record would not be re-opened for more testimony from the applicant.
Mercer County Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson ordered the zoning board to reconsider the application because she determined a residential drug and alcohol detoxification center is an inherently beneficial use. It is one of the “special reasons” that a zoning board may consider in determining whether to approve a use variance application.
An inherently beneficial use is defined in the state Municipal Land Use Law as a use that is considered to be of value to the community because it “serves the public good and promotes the general welfare.” Examples are houses of worship, hospitals and schools.
Sunrise Detoxification Center, which is based in Florida and also has a clinic in Stirling, sought to open a 38-bed facility in part of a vacant office building one of three that comprise the office park at 100 Federal City Road. The office park is owned by the Simone Investment Group LLC.
The office park is located next to the Federal Hill single-family-home subdivision and the Federal Point age-restricted subdivision. Many neighbors objected to the application and expressed concern that clients would leave the detoxification center in search of drugs or money to buy drugs.
The zoning board denied the use variance after eight months of public hearings. In casting their votes on the application, several zoning board members said Sunrise Detoxification Center is a for-profit entity, while most uses that are considered inherently beneficial uses are nonprofits.

