Bridgewater Weighs Zoning Change for Bowling Alleys, Theaters, Arcades

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — The Bridgewater Council discussed whether to change the township ordinance to allow more indoor commercial recreation uses in some zoning districts without requiring applicants to seek a variance first.

The discussion at the June 25 Council meeting centered on the current ordinance definition of indoor commercial recreation.

During the meeting, Councilman Timothy Ring said the township now forbids bowling alleys, pool halls, theaters for music, theaters for live presentations, motion picture presentations, video arcades, and paintball or rifle ranges in Bridgewater, even though other indoor recreation uses are already permitted in some zones.

"At least from my point of view, these are not items that I'm opposed to in Bridgewater," said Ring.

Ring said the issue surfaced after a resident was exploring options in town.

" If you're a small startup company and you're looking to locate your business somewhere and one town allows it and the other you have the expense and the unknown certainty of going before the zoning board, where are you going to put your business?" asked Ring.

Councilman Michael Kirsh answered Ring, saying, "Path of least resistance."

The proposal discussed was not to expand indoor recreation generally, but to add those currently restricted uses to zones where indoor recreation is already allowed.

Ring used the M1C industrial park area on Chimney Rock Road as an example, saying indoor pools, indoor soccer and archery are already permitted there, while bowling alleys, pool halls, theaters, gun ranges, paintball ranges and video arcades are not.

Several members focused on whether some districts should still require case-by-case review because of nearby homes.

Ring said, "I think it's the appropriate thing to do given their proximity to residential."

"Do you want a movie theater or even a live music and you know along Old York Road or you know near homes?" asked Ring.

"Or alternately said if a business wanted to locate there, should they still have to go before the zoning board?" said Kirsh.

Kirsh noted that the change appeared to be "essentially red tape cutting."

"I guess my feeling is that both of these are essentially red tape cutting. I don't know if that's the way that you see it or the way you intended it," said Kirsh. "Obviously the devil's always in the details, but the more attractive we can be to help a resident rebuild if they've had a catastrophe or a business to consider locating here, I think it's the direction we need to be headed."

The discussion referenced C3 and GC/GCM zones as areas where the added uses might still be excluded because of their location near residential neighborhoods, including parts of Old York Road and the Route 22 area in Finderne.

Ring described the idea as a way to be "a little more business friendly" and said, "I want nothing more than to see legal businesses be wildly successful in Bridgewater. That benefits everybody."

No decision was made that night.

The council discussed bringing the item back at the July 9 meeting for additional comment.

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