77 79 Lessing Road ZB 25 1 Planning Review Rev1 February 19 2025

1 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 February 19, 2025 Ms. Diana Chandler-Zimmerman Board Secretary Township of West Orange Zoning Board of Adjustment 66 Main Street West Orange, NJ 07052 Re: Planning Review Letter 77-79 Lessing Road Block #158.14, Lot 243 Application for Home Occupation ZB-25-1 Dear Ms. Chandler-Zimmerman, This office has reviewed the application submitted by Christoper Taharally (“Applicant”). The Applicant filed an application with the West Orange Board of Adjustment for a home occupation to sell roasted coffee and cookies to the surrounding community. In preparation of this memorandum, the following documents were reviewed: 1. Township of West Orange Application Form for the Planning Board or Board of Adjustment, December 18, 2024. 2. Business proposal for Coluna Coffee & Cookies 3. Email from Christpher Taharally, dated December 18, 2024. 4. Floorplan for 77-79 Lessing Road. 5. Survey, prepared by George J. Anderson, LLC, dated July 18, 2016. 6. Verification of Taxes & Sewer Charges Paid, dated December 11, 2024. 7. Certificate of Formation, Coluna Coffee & Cookies, LLC, dated December 24, 2024. 8. List of property owners to be served notice, prepared on December 11, 2024. Property Information The property that is the subject of this Application is commonly known as 77-79 Lessing Road and identified as Block #158.14, Lot #243 in the municipal tax

2 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 records for the Township of West Orange. The site consists of a single-family home, which is consistent of the surrounding neighborhood. The property is located within the Township’s R-4 Zone. Figure 1: 2023 Aerial Image of the site at 77-79 Lessing Road is outlined in yellow. Source: NJ-GeoWeb

3 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 Site Photos (taken January 31, 2025) Figure 2: View of 77-79 Lessing Road Figure 3: View of the properties across from subject site

4 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 Figure 4: Lessing Road streetscape facing east Figure 5: Lessing Road streetscape facing west

5 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 Project Overview The Applicant, Christopher Taharally, proposes to operate his business, Coluna Coffee & Cookies out of his residence. The business would sell roasted coffee and homemade cookies. Orders would be placed by phone, text or social media platforms. Customers would pick up orders directly from the home, though the applicant states they are exploring providing free local delivery. Zoning (§25-7.1) The site is located within the R-4 Single Family Residential District, which is generally described as permitting one-family dwellings on 15,000 square foot lots. Permitted uses within the R-1 zone are as follows: • One family, detached dwelling • Water reservoir, well tower, filter bed • Federal, state, county or township building • Golf course and golf club house • Farm, nursery, greenhouse and similar uses • Hospital Permitted Accessory Uses include: • Required accessory parking • Private garage • Horticultural or agricultural building • Customary accessory building or structure • Private swimming pool • Home occupation • Home professional office • Signs • Fences and dividing walls • Private storage shed • Greenhouses Permitted Conditional Uses include: • Public school • Private school

6 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 • Library • Museum • Park or playground • Public utility building or structure • Telephone exchange • Private club, other than a golf club • House of worship • Banquet and Conference centers §25-9.9 Home Occupations No home occupation may be conducted in a legal owner-occupied one family residence unless the following conditions are met: a. A simplified site plan indicating the location of the use on the premises within the principal structure and written description of the occupation to be conducted shall be submitted to the Building Department and Zoning Official. A Certificate of Continued Occupancy, Certificate of Occupancy, or Certificate of Habitability shall be required for home occupations. b. The proposed activity shall comply with the following: 1. Only one such activity shall be permitted on the premises within the principal structure; and such use must not be incompatible with or disturb the adjacent residential neighborhood. 2. The activity shall be conducted solely by a person or persons, and members of his/her immediate family, all of whom shall be residing fulltime and permanently on the premises, and by no other person or persons living off the premises. 3. Not more than 12.5% or 1/8 of the floor area of the principal structure shall be used for such activity. 4. No display or advertising of products or services shall be visible from outside of the principal structure in which the activity takes place. 5. No outside storage any way related to the activity shall be visible from outside of the principal structure in which the activity takes place.

7 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 6. No pick-up or delivery of materials to or from the premises in which the activity takes place shall be made, except by private passenger vehicle, licensed package delivery service, or US Postal Service. 7. The activity, including deliveries as described in Subsection 6, shall be conducted only between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. 8. The activity shall not give rise of the need for on-street parking which shall interfere with the residential parking on the street adjacent to the principal structure in which the activity is permitted. c. The following activities related to home occupations are prohibited: 1. Any activity which creates noise, smells or sights, which are ascertainable outside of the principal structure in which the activity takes place; 2. Any activity which causes interference with electrical or electronic equipment off the premises in which the activity takes place; 3. A retail or wholesale salesroom(s) or showroom(s); 4. Any activity which involves the use or storage of hazardous materials as defined by law. Definitions ACCESSORY USE Shall mean use naturally and normally incident and subordinate to the principal use of the premises or lot. The following uses are not accessory uses and are prohibited: 1. The dismantling, assembly or repair of a vehicle other than one belonging to a member of the resident household in any Residential Zoning District and any Nonresidential Zoning District where such use is not permitted. 2. The outdoor storage of motor vehicle parts or accessories in any Residential Zone. 3. An airport, aircraft landing strip, or heliport in any Zoning District. 4. Outdoor bins for the collection of used clothing, shoes, household items or other goods. HOME OCCUPATION - Shall mean any lawful activity not otherwise prohibited by this chapter performed in a legal owner-occupied one-family residence, including without limitation, consulting, telemarketing, dressmaking,

8 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 manicuring, craft making or drafting. Home cooking for commercial purposes is not permitted. Planning Comments Under the definition of “Home Occupation” listed above, the business described by the applicant is prohibited as a home occupation. Home occupation is a permitted accessory use in the R-4 zone, and as home cooking for commercial purposes is not a permitted accessory use, it therefore requires a variance. As a result of the specific prohibition of the home cooking, the applicant shall provide appropriate testimony for the Board’s consideration as to whether because home cooking is expressly prohibited as a home occupation it can be considered as a non-permitted accessory use since other home cccupations are permitted within the zone, and which normally requires a “c” variance, or as a separate principal use which would then require a “d(1)” use variance because the specific use of home cooking for commercial purposes is not permitted within the zone. The Zoning Code was last revised under Ordinance 2436-15 in 2015. For the Board’s consideration, the State of New Jersey passed N.J.S.A 8:24-11 et seq (added as an Appendix to this report), which creates rules for a Cottage Food Operator’s Permit, in order to allow for a mechanism for residents to start food- related business out of their home. This is partly related to the potential higher cost of starting such a business with commercial kitchen space, and also in response to the growth of home occupations (to include home cooking) during and following COVID. This last was passed in October 2021, after the last revision of the Township’s Zoning Code. Other Planning Comments 1. The Applicant shall confirm they will also meet the requirements of N.J.S.A 8:24-11 et seq. and obtain a permit. 2. The Applicant shall testify to the Board on how they will meet all the conditions associated with §25-9.9 Home Occupations. 3. The Applicant shall describe how operations will work for pickups. For example, would the customer come into the house or garage to get their order? Does it get brought to them in the driveway/roadway?

9 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 4. The Applicant shall provide to the Board the operation hours in which the pickups are conducted? 5. The Applicant has stated it is exploring a free local delivery service. Is that to be contracted, or provided by the Applicant or a family member? Conclusions The above comments are based on the review of the materials submitted to date. Nishuane Group reserves the right to provide new or updated comments as additional information becomes available. Further, this report should be cross- referenced with the Board Engineer’s Review Letter and other Municipal Reviews. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Respectfully submitted, George Wheatle Williams, PP, AICP Principal, Nishuane Group, LLC. Erik DeLine, PP, AICP, LEED AP Associate, Nishuane Group, LLC.

10 | Page 105 Grove Street, Suite 3 Montclair, NJ 07042 www.Nishuanegroup.com 973.954.2677 Appendix 1: NJSA 8:24:11 et seq. § 8:24-11.1 Requirement and procedure to obtain a Cottage Food Operator Permit (a) A person or entity that engages in the production, distribution, and/or sale of food to consumers shall: 1. Have a Cottage Food Operator Permit; or 2. Comply with applicable laws to retail food establishments. (b) A person seeking to obtain a Cottage Food Operator Permit shall submit to the Public Health and Food Protection Program: 1. A completed application in the form at N.J.A.C. 8:24-11 Appendix, incorporated herein by reference, which is available at https://www.nj.gov/health/forms and on request to the Public Health and Food Protection Program; 2. A copy of a certificate issued by an accredited program showing that the applicant is a food protection manager in good standing with the accredited program; 3. If the cottage food operator's kitchen: i. Uses private well water, a microbiological (total coliform) analysis of the private well water that is conducted using samples collected no earlier than 60 days prior to the filing date of the application, which is the postmark date, if the application is mailed, or the date of submission, if hand-delivered; and ii. Does not use private well water, a copy of most recent water bill for the location of the cottage food kitchen; and 4. The nonrefundable application fee established at N.J.A.C. 8:24-11.6, payable to the Treasurer, State of New Jersey. (c) The Department will conduct a completeness review of the application and notify the applicant in writing of any deficiency or incompleteness therein that the applicant must correct before the Department will process further the application. 1. If an applicant fails to correct a deficient or incomplete application within 30 days of the issuance of a notice pursuant to (b) above, the Department will deem the application abandoned. (d) Upon determining an application to be complete, the Department shall issue a cottage food operator permit to the applicant.