Marlboro Planning Board approves 4-home project
BY TALI ISRAELI
Staff Writer

MARLBORO - An application to construct four homes off Texas Road was approved by the Planning Board last month.

Representatives of Sunset Park appeared before the board on Oct. 18 for preliminary and final major subdivision approval.

The applicant proposed to subdivide a 7-acre site into four lots on the north side of Texas Road, just east of Thomas Lane. The property is in an R-60 residential zone (1.5-acre lots). The site is surrounded by a residential zone, a municipal zone and an auto repair dealer. The property has 200 feet of frontage on Texas Road and 45 feet of frontage on Wicker Place.

The plan includes the construction of four residential units, a detention basin and an extension of the Wicker Place development.

The applicant was requesting three variances from the board because three of the lots did not meet the lot depth requirement for the zone.

The plan calls for the removal of 293 trees. The applicant will replant 378 trees.

During a discussion of the application, board member Gerald Berg said he does not believe a great deal of traffic will be generated from four homes. He said although the residents of Wicker Place will have a different lifestyle when the new homes are built, he believes they can adjust to the change.

Board member Mark Barenburg said he believed the variances the applicant requested were fairly insignificant.

Planning Board Chairman Peter Bellone said he believed the issue of soil removal was weighing heavily on the board members' minds. He said there will be a significant number of truck loads of soil and there will be a disturbance to the residents who live there now.

Barenburg said the board should deal with that issue when the applicant comes back for a soil removal permit. However, he said he did not believe there would be much of an impact.

William Kurtz, the engineer representing the applicant, said the applicant will do its best to accommodate the current residents when the top soil is removed from the site.

As a condition of the approval, the applicant is responsible for providing temporary access to Texas Road for the top soil to be removed from the site.

Several other issues were discussed during the hearing on the application and included in the conditions of the approval.

The extension of Wicker Place will be widened from 26 feet of pavement to 28 feet of pavement and will include a 10-foot increase in the right of way from a 40-foot to a 50-foot-wide right of way.

The applicant will be responsible for putting in sidewalks on both sides of the street, as well as a crosswalk.