Proposed Ray Catena Expansion on Route 9 Raises Concerns

Ray Catena Auto Group is looking to expand their business to an abandoned office building on Route 9 in Manalapan. Catena representatives appeared before the Manalapan Township Committee Wednesday to talk about gaining use of the site and eventual rezoning. The proposal, however, is not being received well by some residents who live within the vicinity of the building.

The business would be an Audi dealership located in a 60,000 square foot CMX building currently in the Justin Corporate Center located near the intersection of Taylors Mills Road and Route 9. 

“We have taken a preliminary look at the traffic data and it indicates that there will be no significant impact on the weekday or weekend traffic as a result of this,” said Tom Thomas, a municipal planner who has worked throughout Monmouth County.

As he made the comment, some of the audience members, local residents, groaned in disagreement.

Thomas said that he has spoken with the Catena staff and he does not believe the volume of visitors would tie up the roads, especially since the way people shop for automobiles has changed. Weekends no longer draw throngs of people to the dealership.

According to Thomas, the outside of the building will remain relatively the same, with adjustments made to the interior. The square footage will also be reduced, Thomas said, but this will not lower the value of the property.

Robert Gallagher, the Operations Manager of Ray Catena, discussed some of the plans for the interior building and the business itself. Although this building will be an Audi dealership, Ray Catena sells 14 different brands of luxury vehicles in 16 different buildings in the state.

Members of the Township Committee are invited to stop in the Freehold Lexus dealership to get a sense of what the building will looks like once it is renovated.

Ray Catena's attorney, Gerald Sonnenblick, has spoken with tax officials and concluded that the dealership will benefit Manalapan. Slonnenbick is a former attorney for Manalapan Township and held the position from 1978 to 1984.

“It is very well shrubbed, fencing is not an issue, and there will be no sound system of any kind. As you can see the building is all the way up to Route 9 so whatever happens at the building will have no affect on the residents,” said Sonnenblick.

During public comment, however, two residents strongly disagreed with those remarks.

Pam Cali is one of the residents of Prides Walk development who lives behind the CMX building.  She said that she sometimes has to wait 10 or 15 minutes before she is able to exit her development.

“Traffic is definitely a problem,” said Cali, who explained that congestion is there all the time and not limited to weekends or weekdays.  Her other concerns include the proximity to the car lot, and the the trash and noise generated by the dealership.

“Manalapan is a beautiful place to live…you’ve done a beautiful job," said Cali to the Township Committee. "For this to happen in our area would really not be an acceptable situation.”

Lucas said that this is a beginning of a long process before the building of the dealership is a definite. He did, however, voice his concern about the building remaining vacant for too long and becoming a liability for the township.

Cali’s neighbor, Seth Heart, also wants more information. A father of a young family, he is concerned about noise levels that the business will create. Heart was disappointed to receive a letter in the mail less than 24 hours from the start of the public meeting.

“I think there needs to be an open discussion…this dealership does not belong in this location,” said Heart.

Committeewoman Michelle Roth also gave her opinion on the traffic concern. She noted that the jug handle at Route 9 and Taylors Mills Road is the sight of many accidents. Route 9 also backs up considerably.

“Given the testimony that was given this evening about the changing buying habits for car dealerships, I’d still like a more in-depth discussion on traffic mitigation,” said Roth.

Sonnenblick assured her that the team is aware of the traffic back-up, and it will be addressed with traffic experts and the township planning board.

Sonnenblick also said Catena must gain approval of the site use first before they are able to purchase the building. Catena has a limited amount of time to close on the sale and would like to move forward with the planning board so that an ordinance can be drafted.

Lucas noted that rezoning is not a common occurrence in Manalapan and asked Sonnenblick to make sure that professionals are available to answer the questions and concerns of residents living in that area.