Summit zoning board hears Oak Knoll plan to add classrooms, parking and stormwater controls; vote carried to Feb. 20

Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child Inc. appeared before the City of Summit Zoning Board of Adjustment on Feb. 3 to present building additions and a redesigned parking layout intended to reduce on‑street parking and improve stormwater controls; the board carried the application to Feb. 20 without taking a final vote.

The applicant, represented by attorney Hilary Alls of Dempsey Dempsey & Sheehan, described changes including a redesigned parking area behind Mulcahy Hall that would add about 31 striped spaces on site (bringing total striped spaces to 71), a bio‑retention basin near Tisdale Hall, and expanded landscape buffers along Larned, Blackburn and Prospect Streets. Engineer Daniel (Dan) Chenal testified the redesign removes a previously proposed one‑way egress to Blackburn and gains roughly 10 more on‑site spaces than earlier plans; he said the plan increases lot coverage by about 2,900 square feet (about 0.6 percentage points), to 46.6 percent total.

The parking redesign, Chenal said, “gets us to gain an additional 10 spaces from what we previously proposed” and moves cars from the street onto the campus, which he characterized as a benefit to neighbors. He also testified the expanded stormwater system and pervious pavement design will meet and surpass state and city…