Two Towns, Two Zoning Issues on Tap Tonight

Two zoning issues affecting the township are on two separate agendas tonight, and one is in an adjacent township.

The Livingston Township Council meets at 8 p.m. at Livingston Town Hall, and the Millburn Zoning Board of Adjustment meets at 7 p.m. at Millburn Town Hall.

The Livingston council will be holding  for the property at the corner of White Oak Ridge Road and South Orange Avenue. Changing the property from commercial to residential is a stipulation of the settlement agreement between the Livingston council and TMB Partners.

TMB Partners filed a COAH application to construct an apartment complex on the property, which then was the subject of a lawsuit between Livingston officials and the development group. The Livingston council  on the project in August.

The agreement the Livingston council reached would allow TMB to develop 62 multi-family units, which will have 12 units available to rent for low- and moderate-income households. The original plans called for the building height to be 75 feet, but it will be limited to 55 under the new settlement. The site is the current home of Tutor Time.

Short Hills residents, who are neighbors of the project, have been opposed to the project, and the Livingston-Short Hills Coalition remains opposed. Members plan to attend Monday's meeting to express their opposition.

The Millburn Township Committee also expressed how they would not support the settlement. The committee had "friend of the court" status in the case. Mayor Thomas McDermott said recently he intends to attend Monday's meeting to oppose the project.

In Millburn, the zoning board will take up another night of testimony in the Chai Center case. The Chai Center's planner is expected to testify in the case on Monday night.

Hearings have been ongoing in the Chai Center, with the zoning board opening the application in April. There's been at least one hearing per month since then with testimony ranging from Rabbi Mendel Bogomilsky to the traffic expert to the architect.

The proposal for a 16,350-square-foot structure containing a 144-seat synagogue, library, social room, and several multi-purpose rooms on 1.8 acres of residential property has been met with strong opposition from , also known as Save Millburn. The proposed building at the corner of Jefferson Avenue and Old Short Hills Road would replace two single-family homes currently on the adjacent lots. One of the requested variances is for a conditional use, which requires three acres of land.

While the opponents' attorneys have had the chance to ask questions and cross-examine the applicant's experts, residents have not been given a chance to comment on the application. They have been given the chance to ask questions, but not to give comments. That is expected to happen at a meeting in 2011.

The zoning board also has the application for a on its agenda, but not testimony is expected Monday. The board will set a hearing date in February 2011 for the next hearing in the case.