A proposal to build a mosque in a residential area on Church Street in Liberty Corner would simply continue a pattern set by nearly all local houses of worship, the Planning Board was told on Tuesday, April 8.
David Zimmerman, a Morristown-based professional planner hired by the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge (ISBR), which hopes to build the mosque, made that assessment as the ISBR completed its long list of witnesses.
Also at the hearing, opponents were dealt a blow when the board ruled that it would not assess the proposal’s traffic impact because the site is on a Somerset County road.
Acting Board Chair Jodi Alper said if the opposition sees traffic impacts as an issue, it would need to make its case to the Somerset County Planning Board.
The hearing – the 15th on the proposal since August 2012 – lasted about three hours before it was adjourned and carried to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 24, at town hall on Collyer Lane.
With the ISBR having finally completed it case, Rob Simon, a Warren Township attorney hired by an opposition group called Bernards Township Citizens for Responsible Development, is expected to reveal if he will present his own expert witnesses.
The group’s case, if presented, would be followed by public comments, attorney summations and finally, a board deliberation and vote.
An extra hearing is already scheduled for Tuesday, May 6.
The ISBR is seeking to raze a house at 124 Church St., located on 4.3 residentially zoned acres roughly opposite the Liberty Corner Firehouse, and build a two-story, 4,250-square-foot facility for up to 142 worshippers. There would be 107 parking stalls.
With the site located between two homes, residents in the area have voiced concerns about the affect on their neighborhood.
An early hearing drew 120 people but turnouts dropped when it became clear that a vote was far off. Last Tuesday’s hearing drew about 20 people.
Making Comparisons
Zimmerman said the proposal met all the zoning requirements for houses of worship at the time it was filed, including a three-acre minimum for residential lots.
The Township Committee later adopted an ordinance that toughened the standards, but the ISBR proposal was not affected.
Zimmerman proceeded to compare the proposal to 11 existing houses of worship in the township. Of those 11, he said, all but one are in a residential zone – the lone exception being Bishop Janes United Methodist Church at 22 South Finley Ave.
Moreover, six of the 11 houses of worship abut single-family homes, the planner said.
Those sites were Chabad Jewish Center on Valley Road, Millington Baptist Church on King George Road, Somerset Hills Baptist Church on Mount Airy Road, Somerset Hills Lutheran Church on Lake Road, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on South Finley Avenue, and Covenant Chapel on West Oak Street.
With respect to the ISBR site’s neighborhood, Zimmerman said there were already several nearby non-residential uses, including the Liberty Corner Firehouse, Dunham Park and the Albrook Montessori School.
He also characterized the proposed mosque as “modest in size,” saying even some nearby homes are “substantially larger.”
The only zoning relief needed, he said, was a variance to allow five light fixtures within a 50-foot wetlands buffer, and a design waiver to not have a loading area. He said the intrusion into the buffer area was “de minimis,” and he saw no need for a loading area.
Zimmerman was cross-examined by five residents, two of whom asked whether the other houses of worship have five daily prayer services, as the ISBR plans to have. He replied that aside from a Friday afternoon service, the prayers would draw only a few people.
He was also challenged for saying the proposed mosque was small. He acknowledged that the ISBR, which now claims about 65 Friday afternoon worshippers, projects that number to grow.
Loretta Quick of 124 Church St., whose property abuts the site to the east, questioned how any amount of landscaping could prevent her from hearing and seeing activity at the mosque.
Zimmerman didn’t disagree. “To be frank, the building and the lot are not going to be invisible,” he said.
Simon then asked the planner if he knew how the other houses of worship were approved, if they pre-dated the zoning, how many attendees they have, and how much parking and lighting they have. Zimmerman said he did not know.
Simon also questioned whether the proposal was within the ground coverage limit of 30 percent. While the ISBR put the figure at 28.65 percent, he argued that “the parking proposed in terms of size of spaces is inappropriate.” He said his group would provide testimony on the issue.
But Simon’s quest to present testimony on another issue – traffic safety impacts – was quashed.
Alper, who as board vice chair ran the meeting in the absence of Board Chairman Jeffrey Plaza, said the request had been reviewed by the board’s legal counsel, who found that an ordinance on driveway reviews referred only to “township” roads, not county roads like Church Street.
“I believe it’s within the county’s jurisdiction,” Alper said.
Simon asked if traffic testimony presented last year by an ISBR-hired consultant was therefore “considered stricken.” Board Attorney Jonathan Drill replied that the ISBR was required to present a traffic study, and that the study would give the county “ideas” for a response.
Simon, asked later by this newspaper whether he planned to take the issue to the county Planning Board, said he did not know.
Asked if he planned to present witnesses at the next hearing, he said he would first need to consult with his clients.