By clare MARie celano
Staff Writer
CLARE MARIE CELANO This building on South Street, Freehold Borough, which formerly operated as a gas station, is now being redeveloped as a deli.
FREEHOLD — Borough residents will soon have another choice for lunch "on the run."
South Street will see the addition of a new deli to its list of goods and services establishments. Work on the new Oak Hill Deli at 38 South Street is under way and should be ready to open for business in a few months if all goes according to plan.
Residents will soon be able to order up lunch where they once pulled up to get gasoline.
According to Code Enforcement Officer Henry Stryker III, the gas station at 38 South Street closed in 1987. Applicant Amarjit Nagi brought his idea to renovate and expand the existing structure on the property and convert it into a deli to the Planning Board and received approval last fall, according to Stryker.
According to a Planning Board resolution, the property is in a B-2 zone and the proposed use is permitted. The resolution also stated that the applicant proposes to expand the existing 1,185-square-foot building to 1,389 square feet.
The deli will provide take-out service only and will not have any outdoor or inside seating or tables.
According to the application, the deli staff will consist of not more than two employees and the hours of operation will be Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
A 3-foot-high chain link fence that currently encloses the abandoned gas station will be removed and a 6-foot-tall board-on-board fence will be installed on both sides of the property which border residential lots.
A wall mounted sign on the South Street side of the property will be internally illuminated and will comply with the borough’s sign ordinance.
The business will provide 10 parking spaces (seven spaces are required). One parking spot will be reserved for motorists with handicapped parking privileges.
According to the Planning Board’s resolution, the property has been monitored since 1997 for contamination which resulted from leaking underground storage tanks.
The underground storage tanks were later removed from the site.