April 5 2006 Planning Board Resolution

revision to the subdivision plan would be needed to ensure compliance with the zone requirements. G. The Applicant seeks subdivision approval for 136 single-family lots on a 120 acre parcel of land with only one access road — Warner Road, a two lane roadway - that connects to Oval Road, which then connects with Eagle Rock Avenue. The Applicant proposes three emergency access easements comprised of grass pavers rather than paved toads. The Board, based on the testimony of the Deputy Fire Chief, finds that the proposed grass pavers present maintenance difficulties, particularly in snow, that would impair safe, efficient and effective access by emergency vehicles. No satisfactory maintenance plan was presented to the Board to address the concerns raised Deputy Fire Chief and other interested parties that emergency vehicles would be able to efficiently, promptly and safely traverse the proposed easements in the event of an emergency. H. Municipal Zoning Ordinances require a landscape buffer, of varying width between 75 and 110feet, along the perimeter of the subject property. Based on its review of the proposal and testimony of Mr. Gregor and Ms. Borg, with respect to other viable designs and locations being available for the layout and placement of certain features of the proposal, the Board finds that a majority of detention basin #1 encroaches into the buffer zone in contravention of the pertinent municipal ordinance. Moreover, the Board finds that the proposed Lot 14 appears to encroach into the buffer zone and that the utility easement along the southern edge of the subject parcel is entirely within the buffer zone also in contravention of the intent and sprit of the applicable zoning ordinance. The Board concludes that locating major components of the proposal’s infrastructure substantially within an area intended to be an undisturbed buffer, violates the intent and spirit of the municipal zoning ordinance governing this site because there is credible testimony that other options existed for design and layout of these features without practical impairment to their effective use and function. I. The Board concludes, based upon the testimony of Mr. Gregor, Mr. Litwornia, Ms. Borg, and Mr. Lepore, that the proposed 136 single family subdivision with only one access route and insufficiently wide roadways creates dangerous and inefficient vehicular ingress

Mr. Litwornia, Ms. Borg, and Mr. Lepore, that the proposed 136 single family subdivision with only one access route and insufficiently wide roadways creates dangerous and inefficient vehicular ingress and egress to and within the site. The Board finds that having one way in and one way out of this subdivision jeopardizes prompt and efficient emergency response, particularly given the insufficient width of the roadways and the location and construction of the emergency access easements, and creates an inefficient and potentially unsafe vehicular flow. Additionally, the Board finds that a development of this magnitude having only one means of ingress and egress creates an inefficient network of roads that is contrary to the goals and intent of the Master Plan of the Township of West Orange, which encourages providing more than one road into and from a neighborhood rather than developing enclave type neighborhoods. J. The Board finds the Applicant failed to provide an adequate count of the trees it proposes to remove from the site as required by the pertinent municipal ordinance. The Applicant’s calculation that 7625 trees were to be removed was determined by counting