The Hopewell Borough Planning Board will hear additional testimony on a proposed commercial retail and restaurant project at 71 E. Broad St. when the board convenes for its Nov. 4 meeting.
The board carried the application from its Oct. 7 meeting for additional testimony on the proposed project at the corner of East Broad Street and Maple Street. The project would renovate an existing structure for commercial retail and restaurant space formally occupied by Castoro & Company Inc. as an automobile service station, according to application documents.
The renovation includes the removal of portion of the rear of the building and a small addition at the front of the building along East Broad Street. The project would also remove all the service station items currently existing on the 1.8-acre property.
Representatives for the applicant are proposing the demolition of a portion of the existing building for constructing space of close to 3,900 square feet for a potential restaurant tenant. The building will also serve as office use for 1,139 square feet; a common and mechanical space of a little more than 1,200 square feet; and open-air seasonal outdoor dining consisting of 1,016 square feet.
The applicant is seeking a variance for a continuation of an existing non-conforming condition for the front setback from Maple Street; a variance for maximum allowable floor area of single retail use (2,500 square feet) in the borough business zone (B-R Zone); and additionally, variances are being requested for size of parking spaces, parking setback, and landscaping buffer, according to documents.
The parking area for the new project would also be repaved to accommodate customer and handicap accessible parking.