HAMILTON: Zoners deny batting cage application

The zoning board denied Ryan Pandolfini’s application to keep a batting cage in his backyard.

By Megan Morreale, Special Writer
   The zoning board denied Ryan Pandolfini’s application to keep a batting cage in his backyard because of the nature of his business, as well as the fact that his zoning problem was self created.
   The cage, a tent-like structure measuring 14-by-55 feet and 10 feet high, is only put up in the summer at his home at 39 Peter Rafferty Drive, Mr. Pandolfini said.
   ”The batting cage is for personal use only,” he told the board Tuesday. “I’ve used it maybe 10 times in the three years I’ve had it.”
   The board ruled that Mr. Pandolfini’s problem was self-created, and that it could not give him permission to place his batting cage where it was, simply because he had nowhere else to put it.
   ”The problem is that this is a self-created hardship,” zoning board member James L. Kochenour said. “A man’s home is his castle but we have to understand what the impact could be on the surrounding property. His academy is a worthwhile operation, and working with the youth, he’s getting them started in the right direction. I don’t think he has shown that this is not a hardship that wasn’t created by him.”
   Mr. Pandolfini runs the Ryan Pandolfini Baseball Academy, coaching students and offering lessons on how to play baseball. The listed address for the business is the same as his home address.
   ”It’s listed as a business address simply to have a place for people to send checks to,” Mr. Pandolfini said.
   Attorney Michael P. Baling did not accuse Mr. Pandolfini of using the batting cage for commercial use, but advised that he may need a business license for that address before being permitted to use the cage again.
   ”If he had nothing to do with the business of baseball, it would be different,” Mr. Baling said. “It just can’t be used for commercial use. Because his business address is his home, it creates a different scenario.”
   Mr. Pandolfini’s neighbor, Beverly Janeczek, filed a complaint because of the noise, and the foot traffic on her property caused by the batting cage, as well as the vehicular traffic in the street.
   ”There is traffic generated from the batting cage,” Ms. Janeczek said, “And if you do grant it, who is coming out to inspect it?”
   The board also approved an application to put an addition on United Presbyterian Church, located at 12 Yardville Hamilton Square Road.
   The addition is being installed to cover an access ramp so it is easier to maintain in the winter months, said George Fett, the architect designing the addition.
   Mr. Fett also noted that the addition would not require any loss of parking spaces in the church parking lot, and would have no effect on the funeral home next door.
   The board made general comments about the zoning practices in Hamilton.
   ”There are a number of places in the township that need to be looked at immediately.” Anthony Celentano, zoning board vice chairman, said. “If we’re going to grant things just because people decide to put them up, we might as well just throw everything away. Make it a free for all.”