Board approves temple playground and multiuse court at 1699 Route 46 with engineering conditions

The Parsippany Troy Hills Board of Adjustment on Jan. 15 approved a minor site plan with a D variance for an outdoor playground and multiuse court (including a pickleball court) at the Sri Swaminarayan/ISSO temple property at 1699 Route 46 (Block 725, Lots 8–10), contingent on engineering and survey follow-up.

Applicant counsel Stuart Mossegoth introduced the proposal and called Ravi Amin, the temple's authorized representative, and civil engineer Ruchit Patel to describe the project. Amin said the plan would provide a fenced, supervised play area so children attending services would not play in the parking lot. "Rather than playing the parking lot where there's a potential for them to get hurt, why not give them an area where it'll be fenced off... so they can enjoy it and be in a safe zone as well," Amin testified.

Engineer Ruchit Patel said the proposed playground area would measure roughly 82 feet, 8 inches by 66 feet, 8 inches (about 5,500 square feet). The design includes manufactured play equipment, a 60-by-30-foot concrete multiuse court for pickleball and basketball, perimeter fencing, an entry gate, mulch impact surfaces around play equipment, and a retractable 20-foot netting system to limit balls leaving the court when in use.

The board engineer and other staff raised multiple technical issues during the hearing: the lighting plan showed fixture placements and photometric values that could project significant illumination across the property line toward the neighboring Presbyterian Church; the engineer flagged a 2.4 foot-candle level shown near the adjacent fence and recommended reducing spillover to ordinance limits. The parties discussed lowering pole heights (applicant agreed to consider dropping 20-foot poles to 16 feet), reorienting fixtures, and providing a revised lighting computation that does not rely on neighboring trees to block spill.

Stormwater and earthwork were also discussed. The engineer identified the pickleball court as 1,800 square feet of impervious surface (60 by 30), requiring stormwater management and a maintenance plan under township ordinance; the applicant agreed to provide a stormwater design and maintenance specification. Patel estimated roughly 390 cubic yards of earthwork disturbance; the applicant agreed that any required soil movement permits would be pursued.

Retaining-wall heights and the topographic relationship to driveways and property lines were a focus: plans show retaining walls up to about 4 feet in places and up to 8 feet along the driveway, plus a 4-foot fence in other places; the board noted that a fence atop a retaining wall is treated as a combined height for variance purposes and that the exact setback and wall locations depend on a signed-and-sealed survey the applicant committed to provide.

The applicant also agreed to: install a lockable gate and timers on lighting, provide fall-zone/impact-surface documentation (GMAX or manufacturer certification) for play equipment, replace or upgrade the sanitary/trash enclosure gates as necessary, and work with the board engineer on final wall/stability calculations and lighting orientation so no glare crosses property lines.

The board moved to approve the minor site plan and D variance for the outdoor playground and court, with conditions that final engineering revisions and the signed survey be provided to the board engineer for administrative sign-off. The motion was seconded and passed in recorded roll call: Berkowitz — yes; "Be crowed" — yes; Betty — yes; Glenn — yes; Reddy — yes; Grignani — yes. The board attorney will prepare a draft resolution for counsel review.