MILLSTONE – An application proposing the construction of a self-storage facility on Route 537 has been approved by the Millstone Township Zoning Board of Adjustment.
On May 24, board members voted 5-2 to grant Central Jersey Storage a use variance, a bulk variance and preliminary site plan approval to construct six buildings to be used for storage on Route 537, west of Interstate 195.
Attorney Kenneth Pape presented the application to the board, following an appearance on March 22.
Five affirmative votes were the minimum required for the application to be approved.
According to Pape, the applicant was not seeking final site plan approval at the hearing in order to allow the application to be modified in response to concerns that had been expressed by neighboring residents.
The storage facility is proposed for a parcel on Route 537 that borders homes on Pine Drive. Residents of Pine Drive expressed concerns about lighting, noise and security to the board at the previous meeting.
To address the residents’ concerns, engineer Michael Gallagher said one building was reduced from two stories to one story and rotated to create an additional visual barrier for the site.
Additionally, a security fence that was proposed to be 6 feet tall was replaced by a fence that will be 8 feet tall and mounted lights were lowered to be beneath the fence line.
Gallagher testified that the overall size of the facility was reduced from 83,644 square feet to 72,844 square feet. One building will still be two stories and the remaining five buildings will be one story.
William Copper, a consultant in the self-storage industry, spoke about the security of the facility. Copper said he recommended the business to have a fence and a security gate, require a security code to enter the facility, and have security lighting, security cameras, motion detectors and alarms on each building.
Pape said the applicant accepted Copper’s recommendations.
The gates will be open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and no customers will be admitted after 10 p.m. Previously, the gates were planned to close at 11 p.m. As stated in previous testimony, the office will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Planner James Higgins testified that the self-storage facility, which is not a permitted use under Millstone’s zoning, was most appropriate for the commercial zone in which it will be constructed.
“Nearly all of the [storage facilities] I’m familiar with are in commercial zones,” Higgins said. “It’s a commercial operation, not an industrial operation. In addition, you have a site that does not have public water or sewer service and this use requires very little in the way of water or sewer.
“This use, as compared to other uses that are permitted in the zone – a bakery, a drug store, a delicatessen, a liquor store – those types of things are going to have much more activity associated with them and clearly have much more water and sewer generation than this use,” he said.
Resident Jolene Briceno said she believes warehouses belong in a business park zone.
The board’s planner, Fred Heyer, said industrial warehouses in business park zones are not the same as a self-storage facility. Heyer reiterated Higgins’ point that the self-storage facility was more of a commercial use than an industrial use.
Briceno said there is a self-storage facility in Upper Freehold Township and one under construction in Jackson about 2 miles from the Millstone location. She suggested that multiple similar businesses in a small region might be too many.
Board member Patrick Mostyn asked if the business in Jackson would take potential business from the Millstone location, but the board’s attorney, Gregory Vella, reminded board members they were only to consider the land use issue and not the possible financial impact on the applicant.
Board Chairman Michael Novellino voiced his support of the application and its location in a commercial zone, as opposed to a business park zone. He suggested that self-storage is more like a retail use than a traditional warehouse use.
Novellino said the residents who spoke raised appropriate points which the applicant addressed with changes in the plan.
“The reconfiguration of the building, the 8-foot fence [and] the lowering of the lights all address the concerns of light pollution, which I share. Millstone is a rural community, things are dark at night and to the extent we can, we want to keep it that way.
“I don’t think this use is going to be any more noisy than some other uses that might be there. With the security measures I heard about tonight, [security] is going to be a positive benefit in my mind.
“The biggest concern I think the residents have that is valid is [the facility’s appearance],” Novellino said. “It is going to be bigger than some of the other uses there. There is very little parking need, but that means there is more room for the buildings. But again, is it going to look bigger from where the residents are?
“I think that given the extensive landscaping that has been added, the 8-foot fence and [Pine Drive] being heavily wooded, I don’t think the visual effects of this are really going to change for the residents, whether it’s this use or some other commercial building that would be permitted,” the chairman said.
Board member Barry Frost said, “I’m on the Environmental Commission and normally, I would be against anything other than some trees and shrubs going into any area. So I looked at [the application] from a very critical way and yet, it seems to me to be the best use of a piece of land like this.”
A motion was made to approve the application and Novellino, Frost, Mostyn, board Vice Chairman Steve Barthelmes and board member Andrew Ferrara voted yes. Board members Steve Morelli and Al Ferro voted no.
Vella said Central Jersey Storage will eventually have to file for and return to seek final site plan approval for the self-storage business.
