Mixed-Use Plan Proposed for Riverside Avenue Property in Red Bank

By Allison Perrine

RED BANK – A developer has a plan for something different at the former site of the Visiting Nurse Association Health Group (VNAHG) on Riverside Avenue near Cooper’s Bridge.

In an application currently before the borough planning board, developer Saxum Real Estate is proposing to demolish the vacant brick structure to build a modern, five-story building with 9,000 square feet of commercial space and 210 residential units, 32 of which would be considered affordable units. The VNA moved to the Vonage campus in Holmdel about two years ago.

At the Sept. 4 hearing, the board heard testimony from the landscape architect and planner. The hearing will continue Sept. 16 at 7 p.m. with the applicant’s architect present.

Part of the discussion at the last meeting was about an unusual feature of the new building: a proposed rooftop recreational space with two dog runs. Some questioned how sanitary it would be, fearing that animal waste may run off into the nearby Navesink River.

“As a physician, I’m concerned that you’re going to have dog feces that are coming down, draining and going out,” said resident Ronald Costa, who lives nearby on Bodman Place.

Costa also said the site plan is “a great concern” for drivers traveling into Red Bank on Riverside Avenue, also known as Route 35, who want to turn left onto Bodman Place. “Anything that obstructs your view is going to be an issue,” he said of the planned trees and shrubs at the site. “I want to know that that’s been in consideration whatsoever in the planning of the shrubs and trees.”

The height of the foliage drew the attention of board member Barbara Boas. “It looks beautiful, but there are open sightlines to the road and the corners. It looks kind of tight there to me,” she said.

Also thinking about potential traffic impacts, councilman Michael Ballard said cars turning onto Riverside from Bodman may “create natural sight obstacles” while turning. There are no traffic lights at that intersection.

Landscape architect Dave Lustberg said while views will not be obstructed, he will bring a diagram to the Sept. 16 meeting showing sight plans and sight triangles for more clarity.

The building perimeter will be ringed with a 5-foot-wide sidewalk, with small plaza spaces at each corner. A larger, 2,700-square-foot public plaza is proposed at the corner of Bodman Place and Riverside Avenue for residents and the general public to use.

“Why would you place that area where you would have children, people relaxing…in perhaps, in my mind, anyway, one of the more dangerous intersections in the municipality, other than to try to satisfy the requirements of the redevelopment plan?” asked attorney Ron Gasiorowski, who represents an adjoining property owner.

“You want to create plaza spaces in areas that are visible and open,” Lustberg said. “This area is located directly outside the lobby. This is, in our view, a nice space.”

Others at the meeting took issue with the planned tree removals, including Bodman Place resident Susan Woodward. She said she has had a view of an approximately 150-year-old London plane tree from her residence for 39 years. “I’d rather look at the tree than the concrete that’s coming here,” she said. “It’s a beautiful park-like setting, it’s a residential street, it’s not going to be like that now.”

When board attorney Michael Leckstein asked if it was possible to make an accommodation for the tree or to make some alterations for it, Saxum attorney Chad Warnken said while he is not a tree expert, he doesn’t think that’s necessarily possible. “The plan is in conformance with the redevelopment plan,” he said, which was mentioned more than once at the meeting.

“We know that,” said Leckstein. “If the public is concerned about a particular item, let’s get the facts and decide whether or not some accommodation can be made. The answer can’t always be ‘We comply.’ ”

The application has been carried to the Monday, Sept. 16 meeting at 7 p.m.