Market conditions change Kaplan plan Builder seeks fewer units for Heritage at Towne Lake BY MICHAEL ACKER Staff Writer Developers typically ask the Planning Board to approve new homes. Not last week in Sayreville.Kaplan Cos., which has approval to build a 200-unit, age-restricted community called Heritage at Towne Lake, told the Planning Board it would like to build fewer homes. Michael Kaplan, former president of the Highland Park-based firm, presented the board with a new concept plan for the community during an informal hearing June 13. The plan reduces the number of units by 16, for a total of 184. "It is not our usual direction," Kaplan noted. The builder cited the current economy and the sudden downward trend that the real estate market in New Jersey has experienced since the Planning Board approved the community in 2005. "It is basically presenting a problem to us, but also pretty much to every builder in the state of New Jersey," Kaplan said. In the past five years, the price of housing has become out of reach for many would-be homeowners, Kaplan added. "It is creating a situation where we discovered from our experience that the market will not take the product that we desire," Kaplan said. "There is nothing wrong with the product, except the pricing. "In the world of tomorrow, the product would be too expensive," he added. With the affordability factor particularly affecting age-restricted homes, a state unemployment rate at over 4 percent, and increasing interest rates on mortgages, Kaplan said the firm decided to adjust the plan. "We have come up with an alternative product," he said. The new concept plan calls for four buildings each containing 46 units with individual garages. The former plan was for three buildings of between 66 and 70 units each and an underground parking garage in each structure. The former design raised unnecessary costs in light of the current market conditions, Kaplan said. The new concept is less expensive, less dense and a more competitive product than the prior plan, he added. The new proposal calls for 1.6 parking spaces per unit. This change was made after the company determined that it needed less parking than was included in the original plan. Kaplan said the streets of the community would not be designed for parking purposes. Planning Board engineer Jay Cornell noted that the borough's ordinance requires two parking spaces per unit, so Kaplan will have to present testimony to justify the reduction in parking when seeking formal approval for the amended plan. With 184 units in the concept plan, Kaplan would need to provide 378 parking spaces to meet the borough's requirement, Cornell said. Some board members raised concerns about the reduction in parking, saying that residents may need more spaces for guests or additional cars they might own. "Personally, I'm a little concerned about that," Frank Bella said. "This is something that the ordinance requires." Kaplan said the borough's minimum of two parking spaces per unit has been too high, based on the company's prior experience. Planning Board Chairman Dr. John Misiewicz said he, too, was concerned about the parking alterations. It would not take too many more spaces to meet the borough's minimum standard, he noted. "What's another couple of spaces here and there?" Misiewicz asked the developer. Kaplan told the Suburban that the needs of seniors are different from those of younger residents, and he wants to avoid having a great number of empty parking spaces that could have been used for open space. Bella said that while he is confident that Kaplan will produce a good product, he is concerned about the addition of a fourth building that will take away additional green space. Kaplan attempted to reassure the board that the amount of open or green space will remain mostly the same as in the former plan. He told the Suburban that the new buildings being proposed are almost half the size of the former structures planned. While the changes are related to the affordability of the properties, the changes do not cheapen the product or lower its quality, Kaplan said. The square footage of each unit will likely stay close to the original proposal, give or take 5 percent, he said. "The interiors will be similar, but not the same," Kaplan said. Kaplan Cos. originally envisioned the properties to cost approximately $400,000. The price range for the properties in the new concept plan would be in the low $300,000 range, he said. Kaplan said he would like to get through the approval process by the end of the year and begin construction in 2008. He could not give an expected completion date because construction cannot start until the units are sold. "Banks have become quite wary of building ahead of sales," Kaplan said.