Rt. 23 Apartment-Retail Application Approved

WAYNE, NJ — The Zoning Board of Adjustment approved a controversial apartment and retail site plan application and variances Monday that drew criticism from residents regarding its potential impact on the school system, flooding and traffic.

Galreh LLC's application sought environmental waivers and a use variance to allow residential development in a commercial zone.

All the waivers and the site plan were approved unamiously, with the exception of the use variance, which passed 6-1.

The application called for a five-story apartment building, 12,800-square-foot building and a 262-seat restaurant to be built on the 10-acre site.

Residents spoke out against the application and questioned several experts during board meetings over the year where testimony was heard.

The 10-acre site is located on the southbound side of Route 23, a side that many retailers, including Whole Foods, Wegman’s, CVS and ShopRite said is not business-friendly, Galreh’s owner previously testified. Only coffee and bagel shops do well on that side due to the number of commuters traveling on that side of the highway versus the northbound side, according to the owner.

The retail section of the property was designed with a Trader Joe’s in mind. There already is a Trader Joe’s in town on Hamburg Turnpike.

Wayne Lincoln Mercury, which is located across from the property, stores vehicles on the site. Wayne Hyundai’s owner tried to purchase the property from Galreh, but the sale never went through.

After 18 to 24 months of talking with Galreh, Whole Foods Market said there are not enough "college-educated" people in Wayne to have a store there, the property's owner testified at a previous meeting. Wegman's said the infrastructure would be too expensive. ShopRite, which already has a Wayne store on Hamburg Turnpike, pulled out of consideration after a traffic study showed the south side of the highway "wasn't viable," according to the owner.

The property is located in a floodplain bordering the Pompton River. Local residents of nearby Sandra Lane and of Pequannock Township said developing the site would only make flooding worse and criticized Galreh's stormwater management plan. They hired a lawyer, Stuart Lieberman, who said in his closing statement that Galreh failed to make its case regarding the application.

Mark Semeraro, Galreh’s lawyer, previously said the plan reduces the 100-, 10-, and two-year floodwater runoff by 29, 46, and 56 percent, respectively, more than was required.

Chairman William Van Gieson said he does not believe the development will have a negative impact on flooding. He said that rising water upstream has more of an impact on local flooding.

Some parents expressed concern at previous board meetings that the development would increase the number of children attending school in Wayne, increasing class sizes and possibly raising taxes.

Galreh previously said that, at most, 17 additional children would attend the Wayne Public School District if the apartments were filled to capacity. That projection was based on a Rutgers University study.

Of the 232 luxury apartments, 112 would be one-bedroom and 116 would be two-bedrooms. Approximately 23 would be affordably priced and four would be studio units.

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