Wonder Foods told the Cranford Planning Board on Aug. 27 that it will step up on-site enforcement and install decibel meters after residents complained of loud music, trash and other disturbances near the 42 Jackson food-production site. The company’s witness said the measures are meant to reduce late-night and early-morning disruptions in the adjoining Linden and Cranford neighborhoods.
The applicant’s representative, Mr. Botcher, said the company has “reiterat[ed] some of our personnel policies, about what it means to be a good neighbor,” and posted new notices around the building. He told the board the company is “bringing another security guard on” for overnight shifts, and that the company plans to place two decibel meters “on the Linden side of the parking lot” to provide real-time alerts to staff when noise exceeds thresholds. Botcher said the meters’ fields of view will be limited to the company parking lot and will not record conversations.
Neighbors and board members pressed for details on placement and operation. Resident Greg Seakac and other residents described car alarms and window vibration during equipment operation; Seakac asked whether new equipment would “decrease the vibration and the decibels or increase the problems.” Botcher said he was not previously aware of some car-alarm complaints and agreed to investigate and to “check into that.”
Why it matters: residents said the noise has been ongoing for months and in some cases years, and they told the board they frequently call police. Board professionals and members asked the applicant to provide technical documentation and to agree to enforceable conditions.
Supporting details: in testimony the applicant described multiple steps already in place or planned: written reminders to staff before each shift; more frequent perimeter sanitation walks; an overnight security guard; expanded trash pickup and a prohibition on commercial trucks arriving before specified hours; orientation of refrigerated trailers to reduce sound toward homes; and proposed cameras and the decibel meters. Botcher said the company would provide a site-specific email address to receive resident complaints and said staff would escalate repeat delivery or idling violations to vendors.
Requests and follow-up: board members and several residents urged that decibel meters trigger real-time alerts and that the company specify who receives alerts and how the company will respond. The board asked the applicant to provide a written operating narrative, cut sheets for proposed equipment, the planned locations for meters and cameras, and any decibel tests once performed. Several residents also asked the board to consider specific, enforceable hours for deliveries and refuse activities.
Public comments and next steps: multiple residents described continuing disturbances and requested the board require specific mitigation measures before approval of the application’s site changes. The hearing was continued to Sept. 17, 2025, and the board directed the applicant to supply the requested documentation before the next session.