HOWELL – No decision has been reached as to which municipal board in Howell will hold public hearings on an application that has been filed by L&L Paving, Yellowbrook Road.
The company is proposing to remove an existing concrete manufacturing facility and to develop a bituminous (asphalt) concrete manufacturing facility at its property in a Special Economic Development (SED) zone.
The question that remains unanswered is whether the firm’s application will be heard by the Howell Planning Board or by the Howell Zoning Board of Adjustment.
The Planning Board hears applications that conform to municipal ordinances and attorney Michael Butler, who represents L&L Paving, is attempting to have the Planning Board accept jurisdiction of the application.
During recent meetings, Butler has argued that his client’s application is consistent with applications the board has approved in the past, as well as consistent with the zoning when the application was filed.
The zoning board hears applications that propose a use that does not conform to the permitted uses in a zone and require the granting of a variance (i.e., a commercial use proposed in a residential zone).
Attorney Ron Gasiorowski, who represents Stavola Leasing, is attempting to have the zoning board accept jurisdiction of the L&L Paving application.
During recent meetings, Gasiorowski has argued that bituminous concrete manufacturing and/or asphalt is not consistent with the SED zone.
The issue was most recently discussed at the Nov. 13 zoning board meeting. Butler and Gasiorowski presented witnesses to testify on behalf of their clients.
Before any witnesses testified, Butler said there is a “bigger picture here than what was presented by Mr. Gasiorowski.”
“What he we have here is a competitor with a bituminous concrete facility … there is a bigger picture here, this (objection to L&L Paving) was filed by Stavola Leasing and Stavola Leasing owns property across the street from my client,” Butler said.
Gasiorowski responded by saying that who his client is “has no relevance.”
The board’s chairman, Wendell Nanson, said, “this is kind of irrelevant at this point; what happens offsite is not what we are here for.”
Butler agreed to a point, but he said, “decisions that have been made for 40 years or more saying that the manufacturing of bituminous concrete, the manufacturing of concrete, is permitted in this zone, on properties on Yellowbrook Road, including a property owned by Stavola Leasing, so it is important to understand there is a bigger picture here. The question before the board is ‘What is a concrete product?’ That question has been answered by the planning board for the past 40 years.”
Gasiorowski presented planner Andrew Thomas, who said, “The (L&L Paving) site is in the SED zone. It permits a variety of uses and the uses include a a number of manufacturing uses related to finished products … such as food products, textile products, apparel, and finished products like fabric, lumber and wood products, and also metal products.”
Howell’s SED ordinance was revised and eliminated concrete manufacturing from the SED zone after the L&L Paving application was submitted.
“In my opinion the manufacturing of concrete products is a distinct type of use,” Thomas said. “The ordinance does not indicate the manufacturing of concrete is permitted, it says the manufacturing of concrete products (is permitted).”
Thomas said concrete products would include finished building materials.
Butler asked Thomas where in the ordinance the word “finished” appears as it pertains to products. Thomas said the ordinance “does not say it particularly in the principal uses, but it is assumed.”
“There is no assumption, what you argued before is that you need to take a look at the ordinance on its face and what I just heard you say is the ordinance on its face does not say the word finished,” Butler said.
Butler presented engineer Charles Sanford and Nanson said, “Let’s just get it out there, what is a concrete product?”
“Concrete product is when you mix aggregate with some kind of binder and that binder can be a Portland cement or in this case it can be asphalt,” Sanford said, and he added other technical details of its production.
Butler presented planner Christine Cofone, who reviewed various aspects of the SED zone. She said there is no definition for concrete products and there is no definition for manufacturing in the zoning ordinance.
Cofone said she would call what L&L Paving wants to do at its property on Yellowbrook Road in Howell “a permitted principal use.”
Board members did not decide the matter on Nov. 13 and the L&L Paving issue was expected to be the topic of additional discussion at the board’s Nov. 27 meeting.
