“Experts” expound upon proposed development in Ridgewood
Thursday January 24, 2013, 3:36 PM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News
Planning and traffic experts retained by developer John Saraceno suggest that the mixed-use development proposed along North Maple Avenue will add a token amount to Ridgewood’s crowded schools and congested roads, but the minimal impact on those hot-button issues will be outweighed by the overall site improvement.
If built, the project known as The Enclave will bring 52 luxury-style apartments to the 1.37-acre plot in the Central Business District. The complex, which tops out at four stories plus a parking garage, also features 28,000 square feet for retail purposes and incorporates the existing Sealfons |building.
The Enclave is one of four downtown housing proposals whose applications are currently before the Planning Board.
The 137,000-square-foot Ridgewood Station development, planned for the former Ken Smith Motors property, contains the most proposed housing units with 114. The Dayton, an upscale garden apartment complex at the old Brogan Cadillac lot, calls for 106 dwellings. Chestnut Village, if approved, would bring roughly half the number of apartments as the Dayton to the former motor vehicle inspection site on Chestnut Street.
Planning Board members are studying the four proposals for a broader project, the developers’ request for a Master Plan amendment that will essentially create one or more overlay zones in the CBD.
Concerns over the effect that the proposed housing plans will have on Ridgewood’s schools and traffic were at the forefront of Wednesday’s Planning Board meeting. Speaking specifically about The Enclave, planner Joseph Burgis testified that the proposal will likely produce 105 residents, eight of whom will be public school children (PSC).
Has anyone from the Village done any of their OWN analysis on the impact of 4 proposed housing projects, 2 proposed parking garages plus the Valley expansion? (Remember Valley? You think they’ve given up?). Why are we relying on experts hired by developers?
Before a single one of these proposed projects moves forward, the Mayor and his Council need to articulate what they want to achieve for their constituents through such rapid change. Once there is some sort of coherent vision that incorporates any or all of these proposed projects, the Village needs to do its own homework. Yes, we need to know what the impact on traffic and the school system be. Beyond that, what will the overall economic impact be? Will we have the physical infrastructure and municipal services to support life in the Village after any of these projects is complete?
The Village put a Master Plan in place largely to keep unbridled expansion in check. We can’t just keep making one-off amendments to it to suit one hospital or developer at a time without doing our own analysis on the cumulative impact of all of these proposed projects.
I’ve been telling people for the last several years, no matter what age you are, young or old, “HOMEWORK” will always have to be done to get things done right.