Planners think four units should be cut back to three
By: Laura Pelner
LAMBERTVILLE After more than two hours of discussion with the Planning Board about four proposed townhouses on the Wilson Street side of Main Street, the attorney and residents in favor of the townhouses decided to wait another month and again revise their plans in the hopes of winning board approval.
Attorney Steve Morland asked the board for its informal opinion about the current plans, and after hearing their apprehension, he and his clients are making more revisions and carrying their plans over to the board’s Sept. 5 meeting.
Many board members expressed concern for the size of the proposed townhouses.
"I’m not opposed to townhouses on the property," said board member Beth Gardner. "But the primary issue is the size and scale of the buildings. The building is too big for that site."
Ms. Gardner said she’s most worried about the height of the proposed townhouses three stories tall.
"I’d like to see the third floor knocked off and the rooms put elsewhere," she said. "My concern is the scale of the building."
Board member Steve Stegman said the buildings would be "out of scale with the rest of the block." Member Rob Pittore said he thinks four townhouses is too many.
"It seems to me three is better planning," Mr. Pittore said.
Mayor David Del Vecchio and board Chairman Tim Korzun also asked why there had to be four townhouses on the site.
"The reason seems to be nothing more than economics for building four units," Mr. Korzun said. "I’ve never heard a good reason for four versus three."
Mr. Morland answered by saying he and his clients saw no reason to eliminate one unit.
"We’re trying to create continuity," he said. "(My clients) feel four is better than three. They feel four has a better impact then three."
The size and number of units also brought up questions about parking. Under the current proposal, there would be 13 spaces for the four units comprised of garages and some parking in the street.
Some board members suggested getting rid of the garages and parking cars behind the townhouses. Mr. Morland said his clients do not support that idea.
"I know my clients do not feel putting parking in the rear would be good for sale," he said. "You’d have no backyard. It’s not something they want to do."
Mr. Stegman suggested that if there were only three units residents could park their cars on Main Street. Mr. Korzun said parking already is an "intense" problem in Lambertville so the issue should be addressed.
This Aug. 1 meeting of the board was the second time its members heard a presentation about these townhouses. Architect Ralph Fey showed two revised versions of the plans.
In the first revised plan there was more direct access to the rear yards of the buildings, the side yards were enlarged, all the units shared easements, and the two end units were reduced slightly in size to accommodate a larger border around the properties.
In the second revision, Mr. Fey said an effort again was made to maximize access to the rear yards and respond to fire concerns. This revision created a party wall on the south side of the structure to provide more than 9 feet of alleyway between the townhouses and the existing building so emergency equipment could be brought in should the need arise.
Members of the public spoke for and against the proposal. Wilson Street resident Mark Colalilla, who said he was speaking only about the aesthetics of the proposal, said four units would be best. Many people who spoke compared the townhouse proposals to already existing structures, which Mr. Colalilla said is an insult to the architect.
"To do three (units) would look odd and aesthetically unpleasing," he said. "Aesthetically it is correct to go with four, not three."
Barbara Walsh, who is a member of the board but sat out during the discussion because she is also a Wilson Street resident, spoke against the plans. Ms. Walsh quoted Lambertville’s Master Plan and said architecture in the town should match that of nearby buildings.
"In architecture (these plans) are very different," she said. "I believe it’s inconsistent with the Master Plan."
Mr. Morland said there’s a variety of houses in the area, and they all look different.
"This is in keeping with a variety of houses in the town. As far as variety, I don’t see any problem with the Master Plan," he said. "We have an opportunity here to create something beautiful and elegant."
After the discussion, board members were apprehensive. Caroline Armstrong said the building is "very attractive," and the architect pulled in a lot of "Lambertville elements." However, she added she’s still struggling with the size of it.
The only board member who actually seemed to be swayed by the meeting’s conversation was Mr. Korzun. He said he’d been going back and forth on the issue throughout the discussion.
"In one sense I’d rather see three then four, but I hate to lose this project," he said.
Mr. Korzun encouraged Mr. Morland and his clients to consider reducing the number of units to three, but he added he likes the rest of the project enough to support four.
Mr. Morland ended the discussion by saying there were too many variables left open.
"There’s no way we could keep the facade we have now if we go to three," he said. "We’d like to carry this for a month. We want to work with the architect and look at three and see if it’s feasible."
The board will hear more discussion and probably see more changed plans at its next meeting at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 5 at City Hall.