By Mark Rosman
Staff Writer
MANALAPAN – The members of the Manalapan Township Committee do not believe a developer’s request for a variance should be heard by the Zoning Board of Adjustment and will object to the application if and when it goes before the zoning board.
Township Attorney Roger McLaughlin, speaking at the July 13 meeting of the governing body, said he has been authorized by the committee to appear before the zoning board when the Cardinale and Associates, LLC, application is heard.
Cardinale and Associates has filed an application with the zoning board that proposes the construction of a mixed use residential and commercial development on a 130-acre property at the corner of Route 33 and Millhurst Road. The proposed residential uses are age-restricted housing, single-family homes and affordable housing units, according to Nancy DeFalco, Manalapan’s code enforcement/zoning officer.
Residential development is not permitted in the Village Center (VC) zone and such a use would require a variance to be granted by the zoning board or the property to be rezoned by the Township Committee.
Cardinale and Associates is represented by attorney Stuart J. Moskovitz, who said on July 19 that the developer’s architect is adjusting aspects of the plan. Moskovitz said the application will not be heard by the zoning board until after the architect has submitted the information.
A citizens group known as Manalapan Strong is also objecting to the developer’s proposal, according to McLaughlin.
Manalapan Strong objected to a 2015 Cardinale and Associates proposal at the same property when the application was known as Manalapan Crossing.
At that time the developer sought action from the Township Committee to permit residential uses at the site. Committee members declined to make the requested change.
McLaughlin said the committee has the right to defend its authority to zone Manalapan. He said the committee members object to Cardinale and Associates going before the zoning board because they see the request for a variance as a change in the entirety of the zone, which only the governing body is authorized to make.
By filing an application with the zoning board, Cardinale and Associates is asking the panel to grant a variance — a deviation from what is permitted in the VC zone.
Committeeman David Kane said the governing body cannot stop Cardinale and Associates from filing an application with the zoning board and making a case for a variance to be granted at the Route 33 and Millhurst Road property.
Butch Budai, who chairs the zoning board, addressed the topic during the public comment portion of the July 13 meeting. He said the developer would need affirmative votes from five board members to obtain a variance.
“They really need to prove their case. There will be documents and testimony. Our attorney and professionals will guide us (during the hearing). There is a proper procedure to be followed,” Budai said.
George Spodak, a former mayor, said he does not believe Cardinale and Associates should be seeking a variance. Spodak said he believes the developer’s proposal for residential uses in the VC zone amounts to a zoning change which, as McLaughlin noted, only the governing body is authorized to make.