Residents concerned about
proposal to build 56 homes
Additional traffic would
not warrant signal at intersection, engineer says
By vincent todaro
Staff Writer

EAST BRUNSWICK — Residents have concerns about traffic and sewer problems as a result of the proposal to build Tamarack Hollow, a 56-home development planned for Fresh Ponds Road.

Hazlet-based developer Matzel & Mumford is proposing the development in the rural preservation zone, marking the first time a developer has sought to use the township’s new zoning law. The law, which so far has withstood a court challenge by a group of residents, went into effect in 2001. It allows for only one home to be built per 6 acres of land, but a cluster option allows for one house per 3.5 acres if the developer keeps at least 75 percent of the land as open space.

The proposal involves four noncontiguous tracts that comprise a total of 209 acres. While three of the tracts would be left as farmland or in their natural state, the development would be built on one primarily wooded parcel west of Fresh Ponds Road and north of Church Lane.

At the March 5 Planning Board meeting, some residents voiced concerns about the plan, which they argued would increase traffic and create a safety hazard in the area.

Job Gash, a former board member whose term ended in 2001, said that each home in the development will likely bring three cars, thus adding about 180 more cars to the winding roads present in this section of the township.

Some residents were concerned about the intersection of Fresh Ponds Road and Hardenburg Lane. They said the intersection already sees too many car accidents.

Resident Karen Hydrusko asked how many accidents have to occur at an intersection before a traffic light can be installed.

John Rea, traffic engineer for the applicant, said the intersection of Fresh Ponds Road and Hardenburg Lane does not meet the criteria for a traffic light. The state Department of Transportation (DOT) has rigid criteria which must be met before a light can be installed on any road, regardless of whether it is a state, county or local road. There is no set number of accidents that would make the intersection eligible for a signal, he said.

Hydrusko said vehicles often run the stop sign on Fresh Ponds Road.

Herb Heim, another resident, said the roads in the area, including Riva Avenue, have remained unimproved in order to slow development. Despite that, traffic has increased. If the Tamarack Hollow development is built, there will be even more traffic on roads that need repair, he said.

Rea said work is being done to improve Fresh Ponds Road. He said a stretch of about 1,900 feet will be widened in order to make the road safer.

Mayor William Neary, who also sits on the board, said work was delayed for a year because of a lawsuit filed by Fresh Ponds Road residents regarding the proposed roadwork. That lawsuit was dismissed by a state Superior Court judge last year.

Heim said Fresh Ponds Road has been in bad shape for years, but that it was not until the Tamarack Hollow development came around that the township decided to improve the road.

Neary said that was "sheer coincidence," and another township official said East Brunswick has been improving roads in the area for years. The roads that were in the worst shape were improved first, he said.

Area resident William Schultz said the intersection at Hardenburg and Church lanes has become a traffic problem, and he asked how much traffic would have to cross through it before a light could be installed.

Rea said the DOT would need to see an extreme volume of traffic there over an eight-hour period each day. He said the off-peak traffic is unlikely to be enough for the DOT to allow for a light.

Board member and Councilman David Stahl asked about the effect a new mosque being built on Dunhams Corner Road would have on traffic.

Rea, saying he had not seen any study include that data, said the matter should be evaluated.

The meeting also included testimony from Robert Schwartz of Applied Water Management Inc., Hillsborough, regarding the proposed community septic system that will service the development. The company would be in charge of the utility, which has drawn questions from both residents and board members.

Board Attorney Lawrence Sachs asked if the applicant would agree to a deed restriction binding homeowners at Tamarack Hollow to the private utility. The applicant agreed to the restriction.

"Homeowners need to know they are bound to this utility," Sachs said, adding that he does not want the township to be liable for any services or problems.

Schwartz said the utility would be regulated by the state Board of Public Utilities, and his company would hold money in an escrow account, complete maintenance work and address complaints from residents.

Robert Tagliente, a former council candidate, asked what would happen if the company that runs the utility goes bankrupt, as other corporations thought to be fiscally sound have done recently.

Sachs said a U.S. trustee would be placed in charge of the utility.

"A U.S. trustee is a U.S. government official, and is appointed by a bankruptcy court" to take over the operation, he said.

Tagliente also asked about the environmental repercussions should there be a sewage spill, and if the homeowners could sue to overturn the law that binds them to the utility. He was worried about the development’s homeowners arguing that they should be able to use a township sewer system.

Sachs said a full disclosure of the rules governing the development would be made available to homeowners, and that any lawsuit would be dismissed.

"Frankly, I still think it stinks," Tagliente said.

The next hearing on the application is set for April 2.