Towne Deli & Liquors Seeks Addition

The Zoning Board of Adjustment will continue hearing testimony this fall on an application to expand a deli across from the New Providence Train Station.

The Track Shack would be a 1,300-square-foot addition to the & Liquor at 810 Old Springfield Ave., near Division Avenue, and include outdoor seating, under a new ordinance passed by the Borough Council this summer.

The Zoning Board was provided with the borough’s new outdoor seating ordinance at its last meeting, according to board attorney Philip Morin III, “to make sure they understood what is now permitted in terms of outdoor seating at restaurants,” based upon the adoption of the ordinance by the Borough Council in June.

The property is located in a C-2 Neighborhood Commercial District, in which restaurants are not permitted use, so the applicant must apply for a use variance, Morin said. The applicant is requesting preliminary and final site plan approval, along with a parking variance and other bulk variances.

Testimony began at the board's July meeting and is scheduled to resume at its Oct. 3 meeting.

The site currently houses the Towne Deli & Liquor, and Mountainview Roofing Co. in a one-story building. The existing businesses would remain, but a two-story addition would be added on the east side to include a small restaurant and a walkup window for ice cream sales. The interior would offer sit-down meals, but no liquor of any kind.

The project entails three lots owned by LNR Properties (Block 121, Lots 1, 2 and 34), totaling about a half-acre, with the largest being the one with the building. In all, the three lots are assessed at about $400,000, with a total property tax bill of about $21,000, according to property tax records.

Lewis Handrinos, with LNR Properties, plans to redesign the entire parking scheme along Old Springfield Avenue, reconfiguring spaces in the right-of-way and continuing around the building and onto Division Avenue.

Handrinos wants to bring all traffic in one direction to eliminate K-turns while maintaining flow, and adding a crosswalk and curbing. Borough Engineer Andrew Hipolit said the street is currently two-way and he would need approval from the Borough Council and state Department of Transportation to make it into a one-way street, according to testimony.

There are 35 parking spaces, including about a dozen NJ Transit spaces, which leases the spaces to LNR Properties. The Zoning Board had some concerns about ensuring that parking needs would not be intensified. Parking spaces, which are currently angled, would be reconfigured along the front of the property on Old Springfield Avenue, according to the July meeting minutes.

The deli and liquor store has been at the site since 1955, operating from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. Handrinos is a silent partner in the deli/liquor store, owning half of the business, and would be the only owner of The Track Shack, according to testimony from the July meeting.

The ice cream walkup window would be open between May and October from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and the restaurant would open inside at 5 p.m. In the off-season, only the restaurant would be open, from 5 p.m. to 10 or 11 p.m.

Several residents of Division Avenue and Lavina Court came out when testimony on the application began this summer, with the Zoning Board hearing from the property’s owner, the project’s architect and engineer. Testimony is scheduled to continue with the engineer at the board’s October meeting.