Mixed Used Development Ordinance For Route 34 and Broad Street on Tonight's Agenda
A section of Route 34 in Matawan near Walgreens may soon be zoned for a mixed use development. A public hearing will be held for the proposed ordinance at the council's Oct. 2 meeting.
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The Matawan Borough Council will hold a public hearing on an ordinance that would re-zone two pieces of property at the intersection of Route 34 and Broad Street behind Walgreens for a mixed use development. The ordinance was reviewed and prepared over several months by the Unified Planning/Zoning Board.
The four page document is specific, governing every detail from permitted commercial uses to how a building constructed on the site should look.
Mayor Paul Buccellato explained that the council wants to ensure that a builder creates a mixed use development that is not only intelligently designed but also aesthetically fits in with the character of the borough.
"I wanted [the ordinance] very specific so whatever comes before the planning board will have guidelines for architectural features or setbacks or height or so forth," Buccellato said.
According to the ordinance, "The purpose of the Mixed Use Development District is to promote the development of compact, self-contained, transit oriented, mixed use development that incorporates both non-residential and multi-family residential development compatible with adjoining residential, non-residential and public areas."
"We're trying to put in good quality development in the borough to generate revenue," Buccellato said.
After the public hearing, the council will also vote on whether or not to adopt the ordinance.
To read more about the ordinance, click here.
JosephGhabourLaw
9:43 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
New Jersey's 1998 Rehabilitation Subcode http://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions/codes/codreg/pdf_regs/njac_5_23_6.pdf
removed many barriers to rehab work and received kudos and awards nationally.
Unfortunately, this code is great for smaller work, not large-scale, full rehabs. Our endless numbers of towns and counties, with different building inspectors who don't uniformly use the codes, makes matters worse. I've seen projects pass muncipal - but not county - inspection. This doesn't exactly encourage smaller investors to step into towns such as Matawan.
In short, those with deep pockets need to come in first - such as in Red Bank, Asbury park, etc. - before the cost and regulatory hassle of rehabing individual buildings is acceptable to smaller investors.
This is most like the consideration behind this mixed use proposal. This may provide a long-term solution. Unfortunately, individual buildings in downtown Matawan won't attract investment until either: the economy rebounds (or) a mixed-use project arrives on these Route 34 lots and/or adjacent to the train station.