Residents packed Borough Hall in Freehold Borough on the evening of Feb. 13 to listen to a continued public hearing on an application to establish a dormitory in a Broad Street building that has been approved for use as a yeshiva (Jewish educational institution).
The Freehold Borough Land Use Board meeting began promptly at 7 p.m. and ended four minutes later when the application for the dormitory was withdrawn by attorney Vincent Halleran Jr. on behalf of applicant David Rosenbaum of Lakewood.
Rosenbaum is a tenant in the building at 32 Broad St., Freehold Borough, which was formerly the Broad Street School. Halleran told the board that Rosenbaum did not want to put the dormitory in a place where neighbors did not want it and was therefore withdrawing his application.
The property at 32 Broad St. is owned by Michael Beher Sr. of New York.
As plans for the 60-person dormitory at 32 Broad St. were discussed in public in recent months, some residents made it clear they did not believe a dormitory was an acceptable use in the building.
Rosenbaum has municipal approval to operate a yeshiva at 32 Broad St. He wanted the building to be able to house the 60 students between the ages of 17 and 22 who would attend the school.
Residents Marianne Earle and Jean Holtz retained the services of attorney Edward Liston to oppose the dormitory application.
While a school is a permitted use in the building, the dormitory would have required a variance to be granted by the land use board.
Broad Street resident Leroy Smith attended all of the meetings regarding the dormitory and said he believed the withdrawal of the application was “best for the borough.”
“We have taken care of other people long enough,” Smith said.
Lesley Taylor said that during the years she and her husband have lived in the borough, she has seen it “grow and blossom.”
“Now we are like a balloon ready to pop. There are other towns that need growth. We don’t. We are grown-up already,” Taylor said.
Holtz said she was “very happy Mr. Rosenbaum came to agree with those in the town who opposed this concept. We are happy the process worked as it should. People came to voice their opinions. Going forward, it is good to have so many residents better understand how land-use decisions are made, which will help to improve the borough.”
Earle said she was happy about the decision to withdraw the dormitory application, but added that she was also cautiously optimistic.
“We don’t know whether or not he will continue to plan to use the building as an educational center or not,” she said.
Rosenbaum said he “walked away” and withdrew the application, reiterating Halleran’s words, “because the neighborhood was not welcoming.”
“Why move into a place where we are not welcome?” he asked.
He said he will not move forward with the yeshiva since he “cannot do anything without a dormitory.”
“I love Freehold Borough,” he said. “I love the serenity of the community, but not being welcome may cause repercussions in the future. It is better to walk away sooner rather than later.”
Rosenbaum said that while borough officials were receptive to him, “if the dormitory is not welcome in the neighborhood, we will need to go elsewhere.”