By JF Grodeska
ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS – The borough planning board met Tuesday night for four hours to hear Kalian Companies’ revised redevelopment plan for 160 First Ave.
The proposal would raze the existing building that is home to Mike’s Deli & Convenience store and Scenic Liquors and replace the structure with a mixed-use development that will include six one-bedroom apartments, 18 two-bedroom apartments, one three-bedroom apartment, and 870 square feet of retail space. Access to the development would be from East Garfield Avenue.
This was the second marathon meeting on the proposed venture after the developer postponed two other meeting dates. Opening remarks noted that Kalian Companies had reduced the number of variances required – which at one time numbered 43 – to 13.
However, the height of the proposed building – 43 to 49.2 feet – hasn’t changed and would still require a variance, as would several other key points of contention, like parking and traffic concerns.
Kalian’s revised parking plan, with electric vehicle accommodation credits, is within the residential parking ordinance but does not conform to retail parking requirements.
Elizabeth Dolan, of Dolan & Dean Consulting Engineers, LLC, served as Kalian Companies’ expert witness on traffic and parking. She conducted a traffic pattern survey in the morning, during school dismissal and in the late afternoon in February and determined the “site is currently generating volumes greater than estimated for the proposed mixed-use development.”
However, she noted, most traffic enters the site of f First Avenue; redevelopment will move the entryway to East Gar field Avenue and “based on counts and observations,” she said, “there is ample capacity along East Gar field Avenue and First Avenue to accommodate traffic generated by the proposed mixed-use development.”
The board noted that a borough ordinance dictates that traffic surveys performed by the borough be conducted for a minimum of four days for four hours per day. Kalian’s traffic study did not meet these parameters.
Resident Mark Fisher challenged the validity of the survey as it did not comply with the ordinance. The board explained that it would commission a survey of its own should the motion to approve the project move forward.
Erin Drew, a neighbor of the proposed new building, asked whether or not Dolan considered the Seastreak ferry schedule when conducting her survey. Dolan explained that she was focused on the traffic impact from the proposed building on the nearby Atlantic Highlands Elementary School and did not consider Seastreak’s peak hours of operation.
The planning board will continue the hearing at its next meeting Oct. 5.
The article originally appeared in the September 21 – 27, 2023 print edition of The Two River Times.
