Board approves plan for retail/office on Rt. 34 BY MARLENE CANTY Staff Writer Old Bridge OLD BRIDGE - An abandoned two-car garage on Route 34 is expected to be demolished to make way for a 3,280-square-foot retail/office building. The Planning Board granted preliminary major site approval to an application by ITA Consulting in an 8-1 vote Oct. 31. Board member Gerard Haran cast the one dissenting vote. The 16,000-square-foot site, which is currently overgrown with weeds, is located between a 7-Eleven convenience store and a hobby shop. "We want to put something on the property to help ourselves and the public," developer Sam B. Ashor told the Planning Board, vowing that his company would maintain the property and the one-story structure he wants to build there. Ashor spoke amid concerns by Haran that the three retail businesses proposed to be located in the space might exceed a reasonable use for such a small parcel. Haran had previously characterized ITA's application as an attempt to "put 20 pounds of flour in a 5-pound sack," but in the end, board members gave Ashor conditional approval for the plan. Township Planner Sam Rizzo expressed additional concerns about a driveway the developer had planned to construct on the site, connecting Route 34 and Maple Avenue. Residents of Maple Avenue have also voiced opposition to the idea, for fear it will bring more traffic to their narrow road. "We had requested no drive-through [roadway] and we want that condition understood upfront," Rizzo told the developer. Ashor's attorney, Jonathan Heilbrunn, said the plan for the driveway, which officials feel could contribute to litter and traffic congestion, would be scrapped by his client. Another board concern is that Ashor's application requires a variance to construct 19 undersized parking spaces, at 9 by 18 feet each, where 22 spaces 10 by 20 feet are required by township ordinance. The board agreed with ITA, though, that the number and size of the proposed parking spaces is sufficient for the proposed uses. Residents of Maple Avenue expressed concerns about a garbage bin area proposed for the back of the property near their homes. At a previous meeting, they also asked that Ashor build a privacy fence between his property and their residences. During the Oct. 31 meeting, ITA agreed to resolve the concerns by containing its garbage in garbage cans within the proposed structure and doing away with the Dumpster altogether. The developer also agreed to construct attractive shrubs and shade trees along Maple Avenue and to construct a board-on-board vertical privacy fence. Ashor presented the board with an extensive list of possible uses for the proposed retail office building, and agreed to rent to businesses that fall within the town's approved uses for the space. That could mean anything from clothing to sporting goods stores. Carpet cleaning, dry cleaning and tattooing businesses were not among the approved retail uses for the site. Businesses that involve the use of perishable products are also not permitted. ITA has agreed to install a stormwater system on Maple Avenue with several catch basins. Residents approved of the measure because Maple Avenue has no stormwater system. The plan will be tailored to adhere to the board's stipulations before the applicant returns for final site plan approval. No date has been determined for that hearing.