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Morris Township board approves replacement garage and second-floor office for Burnham Parkway property
Summary
The Board of Adjustment approved variances allowing a replacement 24x24 detached garage with a small second-floor office at 1 Burnham Parkway (VA-13-24). The applicants must remove two noncompliant accessory structures and relocate or obtain permission for the garage if replaced in the future.
MORRIS TOWNSHIP, N.J. — The Morris Township Board of Adjustment on Dec. 9 approved variances that let property owners replace a failing detached garage at 1 Burnham Parkway with a slightly larger two-car garage and a modest second-floor office. The board granted relief for a side-yard setback of 1.4 feet (20 feet required), a rear setback of 5.2 feet (25 feet required), and a combined side-yard deficiency.
The two applicants, Italia Duran and Javier Quinto, asked the board to allow a 24-by-24-foot detached garage after testimony from an architect about cracking concrete block walls and soil surcharge where neighboring fill abuts the structure. Architect Jeffrey Gogin said the existing garage is original to the home and failing; he told the board the proposal shifts the new garage footprint to reduce intrusion into the neighbor—s yard and removes an octagonal deck and shed that are noncompliant.
The board accepted Gogin—s description of the site and the topographic constraints. "We are proposing to shift the whole footprint over to make it more compliant," Gogin said during his presentation. The applicant also agreed the removable shed and deck would be removed as part of the project.
Board members discussed practical hardship tied to the lot—s layout and the slope behind the house; several members said relocating the garage entirely would require paving the rear yard. After brief comments and no public objections, a board member moved to approve the memorializing resolution; the motion was seconded and carried in a roll-call vote. The chair said the board will prepare a written resolution for the next meeting.
What happens next: The board approved the memorializing resolution and instructed staff to prepare formal language. The resolution includes standard conditions and requires that, if the existing garage is replaced in the future, the replacement structure be relocated to a permitted area or the owner return to the board for additional approvals.
Vote: The board voted to move the resolution and approved it by roll call. The chair said a formal memorializing resolution will be on the next meeting agenda.
