July 19, 2023 Regular Meeting Minutes

MINUTES TOWNSHIP OF WEST ORANGE PLANNING BOARD MEETING July 19, 2023 7:30 P.M. The Township of West Orange Planning Board held its regular meeting on July 19, 2023 at 7:30 P.M. via virtual ZOOM videoconference. Chairman Bagoff called the meeting to order at approximately 7:30 P.M. He announced that notification of the meeting was given to the Township Clerk, and posted on the Township Bulletin Board, sent to the West Orange Chronicle and the Star Ledger, and posted on the Township’s website calendar. This meeting has been properly noticed to the public in accordance with the Open Public Meetings Act. No new matters will start after 10:30 P.M. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE * Chairman Bagoff requested all persons stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. ANNOUNCEMENTS e The next Planning Board regular meeting will be held Wednesday August 2, 2023 at 7:30 P.M. ROLL CALL PRESENT: Dr. Robert Bagoff; Mr. William Wilkes; Mr. Ken Alper; Mr. Jerry Guarino; Mr. Christopher Morgan, Sr.; Mayor Susan McCartney; Mr. Peter Smeraldo; Councilwoman Tammy Williams; Mr. Sal Jensen; Mr. Cardoza; ABSENT: Mr. Lee Klein ALSO PRESENT: _ Diana P. McGovern, Esq., Planning Board Attorney; Liz Leheny, Town Planner; Mr. Zach Jordan, Board Engineer; Jamilet Baquerizo Vite, Acting Planning Board Secretary

MINUTES & RESOLUTIONS ¢ PB-23-06 Crestmont Country Club Resolution Motion: Chairman Bagoff Second: Mr. Guarino (Adopted 7/19/2023) Alper: Y Morgan: -_ Bagoff: Y Smeraldo: — Cardoza (Alt.2): ¥ Wilkes: — Guarino: Y Williams: 4 Jensen (Alt. 1): _ Klein: -— Mayor Susan McCartney: Y ¢ PB-23-05 TBZ/Wellness Center Resolution Motion: Chairman Bagoff Second: Mr. Smeraldo Alper: ¥ Morgan: _ Bagoff: ¥ Smeraldo: Y Cardoza (Alt.2): Y Wilkes: —- Guarino: Y Williams: Y Jensen (Alt. 1): ¥i Klein: _ Mayor Susan McCartney: Y SWEARING IN ¢ The Township Professionals Ms. Liz Leheny, Township Planner and Mr. Zach Jordan were sworn in.

APPLICATIONS PB-21-01/West Orange Plaza Block: 152.01; Lots: 1445 & 1445.05; Zone: P-C/R-5 235 Prospect Avenue Improvements to West Orange Plaza Shopping Center with addition of new buildings. PRESENTATION Mr. Meese, attorney for the applicant, entered on the record. Mr. Meese stated that the new renovations on the West Orange Plaza will bring a lot of benefits to the West Orange Community such as aesthetic improvements. Mr. Meese also included that there will be new signage, the landscaping is going to be substantially enhanced there will be enhanced pedestrian connectivity throughout the center and enhanced lighting. The Mavis building will be eliminated to either transform it into a restaurant or a medical or retail space. In addition to all of the retail space, restaurant space and service space they will allow the residents of West Orange greater shopping opportunities as well as additional employment opportunities and opportunities for the local entrepreneurs. The applicant is also proposing to add many different size spaces to accommodate different uses in the center. Mr. Delaney, professional engineer, entered on the record and was sworn under oath; his credentials were accepted by the board. Mr. Delaney mentioned that the subject property itself is actually split zoned; the front portion of the shopping center, which contains the building itself and all of the parking lots, are within the PC or the planned commercial zone. The rear of the property is within the R6 zone. The subject property itself contains a total of 32.67 acres. The subject property contains 3 separate levels; the upper level contains the existing Whole Foods and the former Kmart space. As we go to the north of the building, there is another level down that is considered the mid level of the main building and this is where the former retro fitness space was. Continuing down another level will be considered the lower level, in which a small series of retail stores exist. In the northeast corner of the property is the existing Mavis building; it has a front yard setback of 31.3 feet and a side yard setback of 10.1 feet going down to the southeast corner of the property. There is an existing Verizon store, which is tucked in near the corner of Prospect Avenue, that has a side yard setback of 113.8 feet from Prospect Avenue and a 43.4-foot setback as existing from Eagle Rock

is an existing Verizon store, which is tucked in near the corner of Prospect Avenue, that has a side yard setback of 113.8 feet from Prospect Avenue and a 43.4-foot setback as existing from Eagle Rock Ave. The parking lot itself occupies the eastern portion of the property and is generally located in front of the main building that stretches all the way to the north and around the back of the building to provide parking throughout this entire parking lot. There are 1476 existing spaces in which the majority are mostly unused. This site has three primary entrances and exits to the site. The first one is the signalized intersection coming off of Eagle Rock Avenue this is a signalized intersection that allows for both right and the left hand turns into the shopping center and has a dedicated left turn into the center. Exiting the shopping center there is a dedicated right turn lane and a second lane that provides straight through and left turn movements out of the shopping center. At Prospect Avenue, they have two existing entrances to the site. On the

southernmost one there is an unsignalized intersection that provides left and right turns into the shopping center, but only provides for right hand turns out of the shopping center. To the north, closer to the Mavis building, they have the third entrance to the site again. This entrance allows for both left and right turns into the shopping center and allows for left and right turns out of the shopping center as well. They also have an existing slip ramp which is on the southbound lane of Prospect Ave. and that provides access to the shopping center. From the topographic and drainage perspective, the site generally slopes from the southeast corner of the site to the northwest corner of the site with grades ranging in just the parking lot itself from a high point of 590, near the existing Verizon building, to a low of 530, in that northwest corner of the parking lot. Throughout the parking lot there are sections that are relatively flat, closer to the main building, and there are sections of the parking lot that are relatively steep today. There are two main drainage systems that go through this existing parking lot. The first system is a county system and it's shown kind of running through the middle of the parking lot. This system drains from the county reservation across the street and drains into a portion of the Prospect Avenue right away; it only drains into a little bit of the existing parking lot. Ultimately, the system discharges into an existing ditch just behind the property to the north and behind that residential development. The second drainage system that exists today runs along the frontage of the existing main building. It runs along that frontage, turns to the West and eventually back to the North where it discharges through a new outfall structure that was recently created. It then again discharges into that same ditch. The system has recently been upgraded and modified in anticipation of this forthcoming development. The proposed plan calls for the complete overhaul and modernization of the existing shopping center. The plans for the new West Orange Plaza include the construction of three buildings on site, an addition to the existing Verizon building near the corner of Prospect Ave. and Eagle Rock Ave. and the conversion of the Mavis building to a non- automated use. Most notably this application also includes the inclusion of

ng Verizon building near the corner of Prospect Ave. and Eagle Rock Ave. and the conversion of the Mavis building to a non- automated use. Most notably this application also includes the inclusion of Target as the new anchor tenant, which will be within the former Kmart space. To complement these new buildings and future tenants. they are proposing to reconstruct the existing parking lot completely. This new parking lot will include reconfiguring all three entrances into the center, the elimination of that previously mentioned slip ramp, repaving and restriping the entire parking lot and overall improving vehicular and pedestrian circulation throughout the site. The parking lot and the proposed improvements have been designed with sustainability in mind. They are proposing electric vehicle charging stations throughout the shopping center and compact car parking spaces throughout the center. Together these two features will encourage the use of smaller and more efficient cars and the use of electric vehicles, but most notably the most significant sustainability measure that they are incorporating is the inclusion of landscaped islands through the parking lot. These landscape islands will dramatically increase the amount of onsite landscaping and will reduce stormwater runoff, By reducing the amount of asphalt on site they will reduce the heat island effect caused by the existing massive uninterrupted parking lot that exists today.

They will also be replacing all the lighting fixtures with new LED fixtures. They are proposing to construct 2 new outbuildings which are referred to on our plans as buildings A and buildings B; these buildings have been designed to take advantage of the generally unused portions of the parking lot that exist at this northern end and give the center a sense of place and provide for more shopping and employment options to the community. Significantly, they provide for a connection of the existing Mavis building with the main building essentially completing and integrating the shopping center as one. Building A is the western building proposed along the northern end and has a footprint of 15,794 square feet, while building B eastern building has a smaller footprint of 8,055 square feet. Each of these buildings will be one story in height and will only have a maximum height of 35 feet, which is the maximum permitted height in the zone. These buildings include different size units to accommodate small local retailers. The two buildings have been designed with large sidewalks along the frontage of the stores and a large courtyard between buildings A and B; this courtyard will also include landscaped areas. In addition to constructing these two new buildings, the proposed plan calls for the existing Mavis building to be renovated and converted it to a retail medical or restaurant use. They are proposing to reconstruct the existing parking lot in this area. The first step in reconstructing the parking lot will be the removal of the slip ramp. They are going to realign the existing entrance off Prospect Ave. and shifting this entrance to the South; what this has allowed them to do is provide a larger parking field in front of the A, B and Mavis buildings. This parking field will also be used to service the mid level of the main building itself; this new entrance will be a Boulevard style entrance with large landscape islands on either side and a smaller landscape island that runs through the middle of it. This entrance has been designed to maintain the existing traffic light and the existing ingress and egress movements Dedicated lanes will be provided for the left and right turns out of the shopping center. As you enter the site, you can continue straight to the main building or you can make a right as you enter the site; this will bring you right in front of

t and right turns out of the shopping center. As you enter the site, you can continue straight to the main building or you can make a right as you enter the site; this will bring you right in front of the B and the Mavis buildings. Throughout the parking lot there will be proposed landscaped islands and20 electric vehicle charging stations within this parking field. 1,088 parking spaces have also been spread throughout this portion of the parking lot to provide ADA accessible access to all of these three buildings. To the rear of buildings A&B they are proposing a one-way service drive which will accommodate deliveries to the stores and the collection of refuse. To service these three buildings, they are proposing 4 new refuse enclosures. The engineering letter issued by Mr. Hess asked if the spacing and the amount of the dumpsters that they are providing here is sufficient to support the two new buildings and the Mavis building. After reviewing these buildings in detail, they believe that we have provided sufficient refuse and sufficient spacing. However, they understand that it really comes down to just exactly what the tenant mix is going to be. For instance, a restaurant may have a higher refuse load than a gift shop or another retail type establishment and because of that they have provided additional areas in the rear of the building where refuse could be added in the future. Buildings A&B really help to create a sense of place and community for the center, but they do require a few variances for their construction. First, they require a variance for

the front yard setback; the proposed buildings have a setback of 135.9 feet, then 268.3 feet for buildings A and B respectively and this is where 300 feet is required. These buildings also require a variance for the minimum distance between buildings. They are proposing 54.2 feet between the Mavis building and building B, 38 feet between buildings A&B and finally 90.3 feet between building A and the main building; this is where 150 feet is required for the spacing between buildings in this zone. The other variance that they are seeking for these buildings is the side yard setbacks; they are proposing a side yard setback for building A of 50.7 feet and 60 feet for building B and this is where 100 feet is required. The proposed layout includes a sidewalk from Prospect Ave. along the South side of the Mavis building along the storefronts of buildings A&B. This will provide pedestrian access to that mid-level of the main building. Continuing South to the shopping center, they are proposing to reconstruct the existing vestibule and provide access out the front of it. In order to accommodate access out the front they are proposing to expand the sidewalk there and provide a large pedestrian gathering area. As you continue East through the parking lot, they are also providing a scored concrete crosswalk which will be 30 feet wide and just as wide as the entrance; this will give the pedestrians a sense of space and will also give cars a sense of awareness that they're approaching the main entrance and should slow down. They are proposing stop signs on either side of this, again to help protect pedestrians accessing the site. This new vestibule will be protected by targets signature red spherical bollards that they have in front of most of their stores. The parking field in front of target will accommodate a customer pickup area that will be located just to the north of that new main entrance. These spaces will have a sidewalk running down the middle of them and are separated by loading zones, which will allow target employees to navigate safely and easily to the customer’s car and load their items. The parking field will also contain 12 electric vehicle charging stations, all placed directly in front of the target space. In addition, six ADA spaces are also proposed directly from Target’s main entrance. Directly across from the new target, the plans also call

tations, all placed directly in front of the target space. In addition, six ADA spaces are also proposed directly from Target’s main entrance. Directly across from the new target, the plans also call for the construction of a third building, which is label as building C. This building will have a footprint of 8,400 square feet and like buildings A and B will only be one story in height. This building will be shorter and have a maximum height of 28 feet. This building will include the first of two drive-thru that they are proposing on the site which will have the capacity to queue up to 10 cars without affecting any movements within the remainder of the parking lot. They are proposing a loading area to the South side of building C; this loading area will be screened on the southern and western sides by a screen wall, which has been designed to match the facade of the building and blends seamlessly into the building. To accommodate the new Target space and the proposed building C, they are also proposing to reconstruct the southernly entrance off of Prospect Ave. The new entrance, like the northern one, will be a Boulevard style entrance with large landscape islands on either side and a small landscape island down the center. The ingress and egress movements will remain the same, only right-hand turns will be allowed out of the shopping center, and they will also be maintaining the existing left turn lane on Prospect Ave. into the center.