Detention basin draws close look from board
Howell panel approves facility to go with new homes in Freehold Twp.
BY LARRY HLAVENKA JR.
Staff Writer

Howell

HOWELL - After a four-hour hearing complete with passionate outbursts, technical lingo and extended diatribes, the Planning Board on Sept. 14 unanimously approved an application filed by Apostle Acres Development, LLC, to place a detention basin in Howell.

The eight-lot Apostle Acres residential subdivision near Bergerville Road in neighboring Freehold Township was already approved by that municipality's Planning Board. The detention basin that will be built in Howell is an accessory to the development.

A detention basin is defined as an area designed to temporarily store storm runoff so a controlled outflow can slowly empty the area.

Residents of Howell's Moors Landing development, which is east of the Apostle Acres site and has endured significant flooding problems over the years, objected to the proposal, fearing their existing flooding issues would become even worse.

Abe Magid, who lives on Mariner's Cove, the most flood-prone area of Moors Landing, has followed the Apostle Acres application since it began in Freehold Township and has tried to rally support against the application by organizing his neighbors.

Magid spoke to the board before the applicant's testimony began, arguing that the panel did not have jurisdiction to hear the case. Magid said he believed the Zoning Board of Adjustment was the proper board to hear the case as he understood the municipal code.

Magid said a detention basin was not a permitted use in the location in which it was being proposed.

Magid's neighbor, Marie Calderon, said she believed the matter was also a zoning issue.

Attorney Gerald Son-nenblick, representing the applicant, listened as Magid cited the code, but eventually said, "Mr. Magid is totally incorrect. The fact is, it is a permitted use."

Planning Board attorney Ronald Cucchiaro agreed with Sonnenblick, saying, "This is a detention basin supporting a residential project. The board does have proper jurisdiction."

As such, Sonnenblick opened his testimony. He said the 20-acre development has between 5 and 6 acres in Howell, with the rest of the property in Freehold Township.

He said the plan initially called for six houses and a detention basin to be placed in Freehold Township and two houses to be constructed in Howell. He said Freehold Township officials suggested clustering the houses in one municipality. That suggestion was accepted and left the detention basin for the part of the property in Howell.

The major issue regarding Apostle Acres was storm water management, since the Manasquan River collects water from an area nearly 500 times the size of the development.

"It doesn't matter if water comes from Freehold Township or Howell, water doesn't know townships," Sonnenblick said. "The fact of the matter is that the water is going to go to the same place if it goes to Freehold Township or Howell. I thought, 'boy, Howell is going to like this,' since the township would not be subject to additional houses and that Freehold Township will maintain the basin in perpetuity. This is a win-win situation."

The applicant's engineer, Robert Chankalian, said the detention basin would benefit Moors Landing residents and improve water runoff.

Chankalian said the detention basin, to the east of the Apostle Acres development, would be constructed in an existing cleared area and would not disturb any trees. Furthermore, the basin would be in excess of what is required, the engineer said.

Chankalian said the basin will surpass regulations by as much as 35 percent.

"We'd control three straight 100-year storms (a rain event with 7.5 inches in 24 hours)," he said, adding that he was confident the basin would control more than 30 straight storms.

With technical information drowning the board members, they deferred to board engineer Ernie Peters to straighten out the applicant's testimony.

"The numbers are accurate," Peters said. "This site meets both past and current storm water management regulations," but he cautioned the panel that the 35 percent improvement is approximately 1/500th of the total area where water flows.

"You can't see it out in the field," he said. "Anything [the applicant] does is better, but I don't want give our residents false hope. You could make all 20 acres a basin and I don't think anyone is going to see a difference."

Eventually, a condition would be made for the applicant to build a berm on top of the detention basin in order to double its size.

Still, residents rose to discuss the proposal and voice their concerns. What resulted was impassioned testimony and both Cucchiaro and Planning Board Chairman Paul Schneider having to warn residents about speaking out of turn and disrupting the proceedings.

Mary Ruhe said she did not understand the detention basin's merits and asked, "how is the basin going to help us?" She noted that residents needed to be ushered out of their homes with a powerboat during a severe storm.

Calderon said, "This is a serious problem. It's a joke, you are affecting people's houses by saying, 'go ahead and build it.' "

She also told the board that the Army Corps of Engineers has been dispatched to the site to examine the flooding problems and she did not want the development of Apostle Acres to interfere with their work.

Magid addressed the board for a considerable amount of time, and closed by saying, "I don't see why this board can't make a strong plea, securing the interests of the residents of Howell that we can't feel more secure in our homes [about] this basin."

He asked that the planned detention basin be made bigger, despite the basin's greater-than-required size.

Sonnenblick told the board his client cannot be held accountable for the runoff from nearly 12,000 acres which flows into the Manasquan River and has negatively impacted Moors Landing over the years.

"We are not the be all and end all of this problem," the attorney said. "We are doing something, while it might not be much," adding that everyone is entitled to the use of their property.

Resident Don Smith took issue with Sonnenblick's use of the word "entitled," since a court decision some years prior cleared the way for a developer to create the Moors Landing development despite significant storm water management problems.

Smith said the residents are upset for the same reason.

"Can you imagine hearing the same words now?" he asked. "I think these people (the residents) are entitled as well. You have to understand where they're coming from. The applicant is right on when he said this water is a very small amount, but once again I urge you to understand the residents' passion."

Township Councilwoman Cynthia Schomaker, who sits on the board, raised an issue regarding Howell's ongoing work on Bergerville Road. She asked if the Army Corps of Engineers had any input regarding the projects.

Even though Peters said the Army Corps does not issue permits or have review authority, since it ceded that authority to the state Department of Environmental Protection, which signed off on the plan, a condition was set in that the Army Corps issue a "no negative impact" statement, Sonnenblick said.

He closed his testimony for the detention basin by saying, "We have met every criteria, [the applicant] has done everything he possibly can."

The board agreed and voted 8-0 to approve the application for the Apostle Acres detention basin.