25 12 10 127 MITCHELL STREET LLC Planning Review 1 rcd 12 10 2025

West Orange Zoning Board December 10, 2025 Re: 127 Mitchell Street, LLC Our File No. 115.WRZ0154.V01 Planning Review #1 Page 7 g. We note that residential uses are permitted in the district, but only single-family dwellings under the requirements of the R-6 zone. So it appears that the maximum permitted density, as measured by the minimum lot area per dwelling requirements for the district, is based on an assumption that any residences would be single family dwellings rather than apartments. h. The application as proposed will also require several bulk or ‘c’ variances. These include the building height, buffering, lack of open space, parking, parking setback, and lighting. The applicant must satisfy the positive and negative criteria: i. Positive Criteria: The applicant must show that either there is an undue hardship (practical difficulty) in conforming to the code (c-1 hardship), or that the proposed conditions represent a preferable alternative to conforming to the standards of the code, that the purposes of zoning will be advanced, and that the benefits of the deviation would outweigh any detrimental impacts (c-2 flexible). ii. Negative Criteria: The applicant must show that the variance can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good, and without substantially impairing the intent and purpose of the zone plan. i. The applicant should confirm that the existing and proposed building expansion are 2.5 stories in height, rather than 3 stories. The Township’s definition of a “half story” is: “STORY, HALF — Shall mean an area under a sloping roof with less than 60% but more than 25% of its total floor area having a minimum ceiling height of seven feet six inches and with no portion of the area used for residential living purposes having a minimum ceiling height of less than three feet six inches.” j. In the case of any d-1 or d-2 variance, the bulk standards that have been adopted for the particular district, in this case those of the OB-1 district, were adopted with the intent to apply to those uses that are expressly permitted. When the ordinance was drafted it was not necessarily contemplated that this particular use might be proposed for a site in the OB-1 district. The standards of the OB-1 district are not necessarily intended to apply to a mixed-use building or apartments. In these cases, bulk variances related to specific requirements

te in the OB-1 district. The standards of the OB-1 district are not necessarily intended to apply to a mixed-use building or apartments. In these cases, bulk variances related to specific requirements of the OB-1 district can be considered subsumed within the Board’s consideration of the ‘d’ variance. The Zoning Board can at its reasonable discretion determine appropriate bulk standards such as building setbacks and buffering requirements. k. The applicant should provide testimony addressing the lack of buffering, and any efforts that can be made to enhance the buffer between the site and the adjacent residential uses to the east, where currently only a row of arbor-vitae is proposed. l. The applicant should address the required open space set-aside for the site, and confirm the total proposed building area so that the required open space can be determined.