FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP – The owner of JB’s Diner at the intersection of Route 537 and Elton-Adelphia Road (Route 524) will rebuild the restaurant that was badly damaged by a fire on May 26, 2016.
On July 6, the Freehold Township Planning Board heard an application from owner John Bochis (the JB of JB’s Diner) and applicant Cupertino Herrera to construct a new building in the footprint of the former diner.
Herrera was represented before the board by attorney Vincent Halleran and architect Mark Blasch.
According to a summary of the application that was prepared by Township Engineer Tim White, Herrera requested a site plan waiver approval for the reconstruction of the diner.
The diner is an existing non-conforming use in a residential zone, however, Herrera filed for the waiver under a township ordinance which allows a non-conforming structure or building to be restored or repaired in the event of partial destruction as determined by the zoning officer, according to White.
White said Herrera proposed to rebuild the 2,200-square-foot diner in the exact area of the former building without expanding or increasing the non-conforming use of the structure.
In conjunction with rebuilding the diner, Herrera proposed a new facade for the building. Variance relief was required – and subsequently granted by the board – because the proposed facade improvements do not comply with Freehold Township’s architectural ordinance, according to White.
Blasch described plans for the new restaurant and confirmed White’s comments that the new building will not be larger than the previous diner. He said a fence and two structures on the site will be removed. He said the number of parking spaces provided will comply with the township’s ordinance.
The new diner will be constructed with a cultured (manufactured) stone. An awning will cover each window on the building, according to the architect.
An initial plan that was submitted by Herrera indicated that employees would park at a nearby business across Route 537 from the diner.
During the July 6 meeting, Halleran said the revised plan that was before the board that evening provides for all parking at the diner. He said no employees or customers will have to cross Route 537 on foot.
A motion was made and unanimously approved for the board’s attorney to draw up a resolution granting approval to the JB’s Diner application. The resolution will be memorialized at a future meeting.
As he left the municipal building, Herrera said he was prepared to apply for a demolition permit to take down what remains of the old JB’s Diner and to begin work on the new restaurant. He said he is looking forward to welcoming customers back to the diner a year after the fire destroyed the restaurant.
