The Morris Township Planning Board on Dec. 1 carried the public hearing on minor subdivision PB0825 after hours of testimony about whether Schoolhouse Lane should be treated as a 50-foot right-of-way or a 66-foot historic road. Applicants Mark and Lynn Piccolo and their counsel presented deed and tax-map evidence arguing for a 50-foot designation; objectors and board professionals pressed that some historical sources and field monumentation show a 66-foot width.

Why it matters: the right-of-way width determines how much buildable area remains on the proposed two lots and thus affects the magnitude of the variances the applicant is asking for. Board members and professionals repeatedly noted that a 66-foot determination would intensify the deviations from the township’s bulk standards and could change the board’s approach to the application.

Applicant counsel Nancy Lawtonville told the board the submission includes multiple indicia supporting a 50-foot right-of-way, including the township tax map and master-plan circulation plate, deed references and dedications submitted with the application. The applicant’s surveyor, Kirsten Osterkorn, testified she documented field evidence and deed language across the block and said the professional compilation of those records led her "to label this as a 50 foot lane." Osterkorn also acknowledged earlier survey and site-preparation materials she prepared or reviewed had at times referenced a 66-foot dimension for specific lots.

Objectors’ counsel, who cross-examined the applicant’s surveyor, raised procedural concerns after receiving a large set of documents on the afternoon of the hearing. "We received hundreds of pages, literally, of materials the day of the hearing," counsel said, reserving the right to review the record and to recall witnesses after that review. Counsel also noted several early plans and an August/September 2024 site-preparation package that referenced Schoolhouse Lane at 66 feet, while later deed research emphasized 50 feet.

Board professionals and the planner urged caution in resolving the legal title issue at the hearing, noting that determining fee-title rights and historic dedications often requires deeper title work. The planner also observed that the township master plan’s Plate 6 classifies Schoolhouse Lane as a collector, a factor the applicant uses to justify the 50-foot planning analysis, but that design standards apply differently when a roadway is being created or improved.

No final decision was reached. The board carried PB0825 without further notice to Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, at 7 p.m. at the municipal building, and asked counsel to provide outstanding materials and to consent to an extension of time to act through the end of February. The continued hearing will revisit the right-of-way evidence, any additional witness testimony and the eight variance requests reflected on the applicant’s revised plans.