Debate Continues Over West Orange Nursing Home’s Expansion Plan

WEST ORANGE, NJ — A long-awaited decision on a nursing home’s request to expand in West Orange will have to wait until at least May.

The West Orange Zoning Board of Adjustment circled back to discuss an application from Daughters of Israel Inc. during their meeting last week. The nonprofit is seeking multiple variances to redevelop their campus at 1155 Pleasant Valley Way into a “continuum of care community offering independent living, assisted living and skilled nursing components.”

The application didn’t see a vote at the April 20 meeting. However, it’s likely that it will hit the finish line at a special meeting of the board at 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 11. The meeting agenda, Zoom sign in/password, and supporting documents can be viewed online here.

Proposed upgrades include removing the existing structure and constructing a new building with up to five stories containing:

• 163 independent age-restricted market rate dwelling units
• 84 skilled nursing beds
• 64 beds for assisted living with 40 of those beds dedicated to memory care.
• 11,352 square feet of administrative support for the 158 beds (administrative staff, human resources, kitchens, laundry, etc.)
• 31,648 square feet consisting of a community center, fitness center (with pool), auditorium, library reading lounge, game room, art studio, salon, medication center, formal dining room, café, pub (20 seats), and a small retail operation for residents

There would be additional areas for physical and occupational therapy, physician offices and resident support services, as well as 376 off-street parking spaces (419 with EV credit), infrastructure for EV charging stations, an off-street loading space and multiple signs.

Daughters of Israel President Jason Halper mentioned the expansion plans in a social media post last fall. Halper wrote:

“With the changing needs in the health care and senior living industry, I am excited to report that our plans to expand the services we provide to the community are moving forward. We have submitted an application for site plan approval to the West Orange Zoning Board of Adjustment, in which we are seeking approval of a new state-of-the-art campus that will be built at our existing location and will offer the highest level of services for all stages of care – from independent living, assisted living, assisted living memory care, and skilled nursing care. The redesigned campus will include private and formal dining rooms, a pub, a salon and spa, a wellness center, a theater, and other high-end services and amenities. This expansive redevelopment plan will consist of several buildings and will provide a continuum of care for our community that will allow Daughters to continue its mission for decades to come.”

But according to nonprofit advocacy group Our Green West Orange, the plan will be a “detriment to the public good.”

The group recently cited the following reasons for opposing the application:

• “Massive tree destruction”
• “Six years of noisy construction impacting residential neighborhood and forcing their most vulnerable elderly, ill, infirm or dementia patients to live on-site throughout construction”
• “Construction of 163 one-and-two-bedroom apartments (plus 24 assisted-living units) at market rate, while paying no taxes, as DOI is a nonprofit (DOI pays only $47,653.38 taxes on an 18-acre property for renting out space for a cell tower).”
• “High-rise construction out of sync with residential neighborhood character”
• “Increased traffic and congestion and a flawed traffic report”
• “Limited sustainability in design”
• “Decrease in accommodations for nursing and memory care in favor of luxury units”
• “Continuation of outdated model of care for skilled nursing”
• “This property is zoned for residential use and is already out of compliance with our town’s master plan”

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site. Don’t forget to visit the Patch West Orange Facebook page.