By Matthew Sockol
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD – The Borough Council has adopted two ordinances related to parking and controlling development for businesses in Freehold Borough’s downtown district.
The actions were taken at the council’s Sept. 6 meeting. Council President Jaye Sims and council members Sharon Shutzer, Michael DiBenedetto, Kevin Kane and Ron Griffiths voted to adopt the ordinances. Councilman George Schnurr was absent.
According to the ordinances, the borough’s regulations for controlling development in various zones in town require off-street parking. As several businesses in the downtown district do not have on-site parking spaces, the first ordinance amends the regulations pertaining to off-street parking spaces to allow for a provision of off-site and shared parking, as well as the grandfathering of existing parking.
Retail sales and services will have one parking space for every 200 square feet of gross floor area of the building or a major fraction of the building. Places of assembly, including catering halls and banquet halls, will have one parking space for every four persons who may be legally admitted inside at one time under the state’s fire prevention laws. Exceptions are made to businesses specifically covered in the regulations, according to the first ordinance.
The first ordinance will also require additional parking when an existing building has a change of use and and the new use has higher parking requirements than those of the previous use.
A property’s parking requirement for a use may be satisfied through the provision of dedicated parking at an off-site location, which must be within a quarter-mile foot radius of the property, according to the first ordinance.
The second ordinance amends the Freehold Center Core Redevelopment Plan by adding the amendments being made to a building’s change of use and off-site parking locations in the first ordinance to the plan.
Additionally, the second ordinance requires any deviations from the borough’s parking requirements to have variance relief pursuant to the zoning ordinance. For applications for proposed developments that are deficient by 10 or more parking spaces, waivers or variances may only be addressed as an amendment to the redevelopment plan, according to the second ordinance.
The second ordinance also adds the businesses and properties in the downtown district as permitted principal uses in the Freehold Center Core Redevelopment Plan.