2026 05 05 Response Letter rcd 5 6 2026

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 12 of 21 2. Revise the plans to provide CCR (Redbud) in lieu of proposed ASL (Serviceberry) to avoid providing the two (2) hosts required for cedar apple rust (Juniperus species). Response: The site plan drawings have been revised to provide 1 CCR (Redbud) in lieu of 1 proposed ASL (Serviceberry), as requested. 3. To reduce damage to the existing Norway Spruce near Prospect Avenue, remove the section of sidewalk and shift the proposed row of shrubs closer to the parking stall. This will reduce damage to the tree as well as reduce the need to limb the tree to seven (7) feet above final grade. Response: The site plan drawings have been revised to remove the section of sidewalk near the existing Norway Spruce near Prospect Avenue, as well as shifting the proposed row of shrubs closer to the parking stall, as requested. 4. Revise the plans to include the following note to indicate: "If existing trees within the twenty (20)foot buffer easement should fail due to construction damage, additional plant materials may be required at the discretion of the Township Engineer." Response: The site plan drawings have been revised to include a note stating, “If existing trees within the twenty (20) foot buffer easement should fail due to construction damage, additional plan materials may be required at the discretion of the Township Engineer”. E. LIGHTING COMMENTS 1. Review and revise the plans to indicate proposed timers and hours of operation. Our office recommends light levels be reduced or turned off after hours of operation to reduce light pollution. Response: The site plan drawings have been revised to include a note on the lighting plan indicating timers and hours of operation, as requested. 2. Revise the plans to provide the catalog cuts and ordering information for the proposed light pole for further review. Response: The site plan drawings have been revised to include catalog cuts and ordering information for the proposed light pole. The Applicant is hereby advised that any revised plans or other documents submitted to the Board should be accompanied by a cover letter which addresses each of the comments in this review letter and also details any other changes that have been made to the plans as these may not be readily apparent. Response: Acknowledged.

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 13 of 21 Planning Review #2, prepared by Christopher N. Dochney, PP, ACIP of CME Associates, dated March 25, 2026 3. Zoning Compliance The property is located within the B-2 Business district of the Township. Use Requirements The B-2 district permits retail services, personal service businesses, offices, business schools, restaurants, bars, and fitness centers as principal uses. Motor vehicle fueling stations are permitted as conditional uses. A motor vehicle service station is not a permitted principal use or conditionally permitted use in the district. A d-1 use variance will be required. Response: Informational; no response required. Bulk Requirements All development in the B-2 district is subject to the following bulk regulations:

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 14 of 21 Response: Informational; no response required. Parking & Loading Off-street parking is required for motor vehicle service stations at a minimum of 5 spaces, plus 2 spaces for each service bay, and 1 space for each 200 square feet of retail space. • 5 spaces + 2 spaces per bay (2 x 7 bays) = 14 spaces + 1 space per 200 s.f. of retail space (1,142 s.f. / 200) = 6 spaces • 5 + 14 + 6 = 25 parking spaces required. • 22 parking spaces, including 2 ADA spaces, are proposed to be provided on site. • With less than 25 parking spaces, no EV charging station spaces are required, and none are proposed. Response: Informational; no response required. Tree Planting & Removal The tree removal plan identifies twenty-one (21) existing viable trees on the site, requiring 30% or seven (7) trees to be preserved. The applicant proposes preserving seventeen (17) trees on the site, and removing four (4) trees. Seventeen new trees are proposed. Response: Informational; no response required. Signage One façade sign per business is permitted, with a maximum sign area of 120 square feet, and one monument sign is permitted with a maximum height of 8 feet, and a maximum area of 50 square feet. The minimum front yard setback for monument signs is 10 feet. • 1 façade sign is proposed, with a total area of 100 square feet. • 1 monument sign is proposed to be setback 14.5 feet, and with a height of 8 feet and an area of 48.5 square feet. Response: Informational; no response required.

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 15 of 21 4. Variances & Waivers Required It appears that the following conditions are not in compliance with the Township’s land development regulations and may require variance or design waiver relief from the Board to permit the project as proposed: Variances: a. §25-7.1 Attachment 2 Permitted Uses – The proposed use as a Motor Vehicle Service Station is not a permitted principal use. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. b. §25-7.1 Attachment 3 Lot Coverage – The proposed lot coverage is 63.3% 64.0% where a maximum of 60% is permitted. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. c. § 25-8.1.a Setback of Accessory Structures – Accessory structures are required to be at least fifteen feet from the principal building. The trash/recycling enclosure is located within 15 feet of the principal building. The applicant has moved the trash enclosure to be 15 feet away from the principal building. Response: Informational; no response required. d. §25-12.1.l Parking in Front Yard – Parking is not permitted in a front yard, where parking is proposed in the front yard. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. e. §25-12.2.b(1) Parking – The minimum required number of parking spaces is 25, where 22 are proposed. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. f. §25-12.3.a.2 Loading – At least one off-street loading space is required, where no designated loading space is provided. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing.

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 16 of 21 g. § 25-12.4.a.2 Access Drives Off-Street Parking Area – Access drives may be located within a side yard setback, but are not permitted to be located within five feet of a side lot line, whereas an access drive onto Prospect Avenue is abuts the southern side lot line. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. h. §25-14.3 Lighting – A minimum of 2.0 footcandles is required to be maintained in parking areas, where lighting illumination levels will be as low as 1.0 footcandles in portions of the parking lot. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. i. §25-14.3 Lighting – A maximum of 0.5 footcandles is required to be maintained along non- residential property lines, whereas lighting illumination levels are proposed to be as high as 4.8 footcandles. Response: Informational; variance relief has been requested. Testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. j. §25-15.3.C.2(D) Façade and monument signs are required to be located in the front yard, whereas the façade and monument signs are located in the side yard of the building. The applicant has moved the façade and monument signs to be located in the front yard of the building. Response: Informational; no response required. 5. Master Plan Considerations The Township’s Master Plan was last reexamined in December of 2019. The following goals, objectives, and recommendations of the Master Plan may be relevant to this application: • Encourage economic development and redevelopment that is compatible with the suburban character of the Township. • Maintain the existing scale of the community. • The master plan should continue to support economic development, including through maintenance and revitalization of commercial and office areas. • The master plan recommends that the Executive Drive and Essex Green area allow for a more broad mix of uses. Response: Acknowledged.

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 17 of 21 6. Planning Comments a. The applicant should discuss the proposed project, addressing the general scale and scope of improvements proposed for the site. Testimony should be provided addressing the anticipated operations of the auto service use on the site, including the scope of repairs that will or will not be performed, storage of vehicles, storage and removal of tires, hours of operation, and number of employees on the site. Response: Testimony regarding scale and scope of improvements proposed for the site will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. b. The application as proposed will require a D-1 use variance for non-compliance with the permitted principal use requirements for uses in the B-2 business district. With any ‘d’ variance, the applicant has an enhanced burden of proof to demonstrate that both the positive and negative criteria can be satisfied before the Board can grant a ‘d’ variance: i. Positive Criteria: The applicant must show that there are special reasons to grant the variance. Special reasons can come in one of three forms: 1) that there is an economic inutility in using the property for one of the permitted uses in the district; that the proposed use is considered “inherently beneficial”; or 3) that the proposed use would promote the general welfare by advancing one of the purposes of zoning, and that the site is particularly suited for the use. ii. Negative Criteria: The applicant must show that the proposed use will not have a substantial detrimental impact on the public good, and will not substantially impair the intent and purpose of the zone plan. Response: Acknowledged; testimony will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. c. The applicant should provide testimony addressing how this particular site was identified for this business, whether there is a need for this type of use in the area, and how the site is suited for use as a tire center / auto service station use. Response: Testimony regarding how this site was identified for this business, the need for this type of use in the area, and how the site is suited for the proposed use will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. d. We note that an automobile service station is listed as a permitted principal use in the I Industrial district of the Township. The applicant should address whether or not any property

ard hearing. d. We note that an automobile service station is listed as a permitted principal use in the I Industrial district of the Township. The applicant should address whether or not any property in the I districts of the Township were pursued. We note that it appears that the Industrial district is limited in size within the Township to three areas along the border with the City of Orange. Response: Testimony regarding whether properties in the I districts of the Township were pursued will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. e. The application as proposed will also require several bulk or ‘c’ variances. The applicant must satisfy both the positive and negative criteria for each of these variances as well:

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 18 of 21 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. Response: Acknowledged; testimony regarding satisfying positive and negative criteria for requested variances will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. f. In the case of any d-1 use variance, the bulk standards that have been adopted for the particular district, in this case those of the B-2 district, were not intended for uses other than those that are considered permitted uses. The standards of the B-2 district are not intended to apply to an auto service station use. In these cases, bulk variances related to specific requirements of the B-2 district can be considered subsumed within the Board’s consideration of the d-1 use variance. The Zoning Board can at its reasonable discretion determine appropriate bulk standards such as building setbacks and buffering requirements specific to this use on this site. Response: Acknowledged. g. The applicant should address the anticipated demand for off-street parking on the site during peak hours. Response: Testimony regarding off-street parking demand during peak hours will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. h. Township code requires that parking lots for commercial uses in the B-2 district be located in the side or rear yards, rather than the front yard. The applicant should discuss the potential to shift the location of the building and parking so that the parking is to the side and rear. Is there a possibility of reorganizing the site and building layout so that the 8 service bays are all on the south side in a deeper more narrow building. i. We note that the applicant has shifted the majority of the parking spaces from the front yard to the side yard area. Two parking spaces are technically still within the front yard area though. A variance is still

the applicant has shifted the majority of the parking spaces from the front yard to the side yard area. Two parking spaces are technically still within the front yard area though. A variance is still required, but this change significantly improves the proposal’s conformance with the Township’s code. Response: Acknowledged. The variance will be formally requested from the Zoning Board and testimony regarding same will be provided at the Zoning Board hearing. j. The applicant should consider the addition of EV parking spaces to support electric vehicle charging and this would also help bring the site closer to technical compliance with the required minimum number of parking spaces through credits for the EV space(s). Response: Testimony to be provided at the Zoning Board hearing.

Mavis Tire Supply, LLC May 5, 2026 Page 19 of 21 k. We note that it appears that each of the neighboring commercial uses comply with this requirement, with the buildings located closer to Prospect Avenue and parking in the rear. l. Will there be any differentiation between employee parking and customer parking? The applicant should clarify. Response: Testimony regarding differentiation between employee parking and customer parking will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. There is no differentiation between employee parking and customer parking at this time. m. The applicant has requested a variance for having the drive aisle setback as 0 feet from a side yard where 5 feet is required. We note that the property’s southern side lot line is actually the centerline of Blueberry Bend, a private road, making any drive aisle providing access to the roadway technically in violation of the code. Response: Acknowledged. n. It does not appear that any sidewalk is proposed for the Prospect Avenue frontage of the site. While this is an existing condition, we note that there is sidewalk along the frontage immediately north of this site, and to the south as well. This property and the immediate neighbor to the south represent an existing gap in the sidewalk network that could be partially addressed through this development. The applicant has updated the design to provide concrete sidewalks along the site frontage within the right of way. Response: Informational; no response required. o. The applicant should address the location of the trash/recycling enclosure and whether the cement walls will abut the principal building. The applicant has relocated the trash enclosure to be 15’ away from the principal building. Response: Informational; no response required. p. The applicant should provide testimony regarding the lack of loading spaces. The applicant should also provide insight into the process for deliveries and pick up of goods, and the anticipated frequency of such deliveries. Response: Testimony to provide insight into the process for deliveries and pick-up of goods will be provided during the Zoning Board hearing. Loading is to occur within the service bays. q. The applicant should address tire storage and removal. What happens with used tires removed from vehicles, and how are they stored and removed from the site? Response: Testimony regarding tire storage