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Allendale board denies 8,541 sq ft nursing-home addition after police and neighbors warn of operational strain
Summary
After multi-session testimony from police and the operator, the Allendale Land Use Board denied an 8,541 sq ft expansion for the Allendale Rehabilitation and Healthcare facility, citing ongoing emergency-response and communications concerns; board members said proposed fixes had improved conditions but worried improvements might not be sustained.
The Allendale Land Use Board voted to deny a proposal by Allendale Rehabilitation and Healthcare (Marquee Health Services) to add 8,541 square feet to its existing assisted-living and skilled-nursing facility, after law-enforcement testimony and neighbor concerns focused the discussion on ambulance, police response and persistent communications gaps.
Michael Dilla, the borough’s chief of police, told the board that access problems at the facility gate and patchy radio coverage have long hampered response and that, if the Harington gate cannot be relied on for immediate access, police and EMS may need to use a highway entrance — adding roughly "Five minutes," to his estimate of response time in some scenarios. He also cautioned that Knoxbox access is currently limited to the fire department and that keying many outside ambulance providers is impractical.
Applicant representatives described an action plan that the company says addresses the cited problems: radio upgrades, corrected mailing/address information, a new contract ambulance service, landscaping and a plan for post-construction light testing. "We have been working with the board and created an ongoing action plan," Dina Npalitano, the owner’s representative, told the board, citing weekly then biweekly coordination meetings.
The applicant’s operations executive, Brian Huna, presented call data covering May–August and estimated that, even if the facility’s licensed bed count rose to 140, the worst-case projection would be "about four calls a month" above current totals. The chief and others agreed that memory‑care rooms generate a disproportionate share of repeated 911 contacts and that reducing or controlling room phones could reduce some false or repeated calls.
Neighbors stressed a history of persistent problems. James Briggs, who said his property abuts the site, told the board that previous promises to fix trash pickup times, lighting and overgrowth had not always been followed through and urged that any approval be tightly conditioned and enforceable. "The owners seemingly putting the bottom line and investors first with little regard to the community," Briggs said, summarizing the neighborhood’s skepticism.
After extended deliberation about whether the board could rely on the applicant’s commitments and the borough’s capacity to sustain oversight, a board member moved to deny the application. The motion carried on roll call; several members recorded votes to deny while some members voiced support for approving the application with conditions and voted against the motion to deny. The board’s recorded action was a denial of the current application.
What happens next: The denial ends this application as presented. Applicant representatives were reminded that they can return with modified plans or additional technical documentation and that municipal staff will remain available to advise on engineering, drainage and access solutions should a revised application be filed.
