Director Skillender presented a proposed ordinance to add indoor recreational sports facilities as a permitted principal use in the IL‑a and IL‑b (light industrial) districts and, by bootstrap, to parts of heavy industrial zoning. Skillender said the change implements objectives in Bayonne’s 2017 master‑plan reexamination to expand community facilities and recreational opportunities and noted the city is pursuing a public recreational facility on the IMTT property along Avenue A.

Multiple residents asked why the change was written as a blanket amendment across industrial zones rather than handled parcel‑by‑parcel. Gene Perry and other speakers warned that permitting recreation “across the board” could enable private operators to locate next to active industrial uses and raise traffic, noise and safety concerns. Skillender and city consultants responded that adding a use to the zoning ordinance does not bypass site‑plan, building‑department, engineering or traffic review; any specific facility would still require planning‑board review, traffic studies and building permits.

Commissioners discussed master‑plan consistency and outstanding questions about a permit that a resident said had already been issued for an indoor soccer use on East 5th Street. City staff said they would follow up on that permit. After brief commissioner comments, a motion was made, seconded and the board voted to recommend the ordinance to city council.

The board’s recommendation does not itself change zoning; it forwards the council‑introduced ordinance after the planning‑board master‑plan consistency review. The next step is consideration and final action by the City Council.

The planning board approved the recommendation and moved on to subsequent agenda items.