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Hillsborough planning board endorses county street‑sweeper collection facility, asks for stormwater safeguards
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Summary
Somerset County presented plans for two enclosed buildings to store street‑sweeping material on Roycefield Road; the Hillsborough Planning Board found the proposal generally consistent with the master plan but asked the county to work with township staff on stormwater best management practices and structural details before final permits.
Patrick Conlin, an attorney for the Somerset County Improvement Authority, told the Hillsborough Planning Board that the county is proposing two enclosed storage buildings on Roycefield Road to consolidate street‑sweeper material from multiple municipalities and prevent stormwater contact. "We feel this does comply with the master plan," Conlin said during the board's informal master‑plan consistency review.
Engineer Adam Slutsky described the proposed facilities as two fabric‑covered, steel‑framed buildings placed on an existing slab, roughly 77 feet by 92 feet with a center height of about 31 feet 9½ inches. Slutsky said there would be no electrical, lighting, or plumbing in the simple structures and that the intent is to store sweepings out of the rain before they are packed and shipped off‑site. He also said the county received a LEAP grant and that eight towns, including Hillsborough, signed on to the project in 2023.
Why it matters: the county says the central facility will ease municipalities' ability to dispose of street sweepings while reducing stormwater contaminants that can run off uncovered piles. Several board members and township staff pressed the county for more detail about operations, anchoring and snow/wind loads on the fabric structures, and how stormwater will be managed at the site.
Board members noted that an operations plan is not yet finalized. "We just don't know how it's going to operate," Conlin told the board when asked about daily scheduling and who would access the shared facility. Slutsky said the county envisions appointment‑style drop‑offs and that the facility would operate as a shared service among participating municipalities.
Township engineering staff asked the county to consider on‑site best management practices to improve water quality, suggesting a simple conversion of a nearby landscaped island into a shallow BMP that would capture runoff before it leaves the site. Mr. Mayhew of township staff pointed out that the county's warehouse landscaping and stormwater work nearby could be leveraged to address runoff from the proposed buildings.
Board members also raised questions about anchoring and structural calculations after recent local roof failures; Slutsky replied that signed and sealed drawings, including structural calcs for wind and snow loads, will be provided with the design submission.
The board moved to express support for the project's consistency with the master plan while asking the county to work with township staff on stormwater measures. The motion passed on a roll‑call vote; board members recorded their concurrence with the caveat that staff be involved in follow‑up on BMP and operational details.
What happens next: the county said it will review the suggested BMP, coordinate with township staff on operations and stormwater details, and provide final design and calculations during the permit process. The Planning Board's action was advisory — the board emphasized the county will need to supply the missing operational and engineering documentation before final approvals and permitting.
(At the board's informal review, no formal approvals or binding conditions were imposed; the county will supply additional materials for later completeness and permitting steps.)
