Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Site Plan Team Express topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Contested Team Express car wash on Highway 35 put over for more testimony after neighbors raise traffic, site-size concerns
Summary
A proposed Team Express car wash at 1580–1610 Highway 35 was continued to April 27 after engineers and opposing planners disputed whether the lot and circulation can safely accommodate the use; the applicant provided revisions, but residents and an opposing planner said traffic and environmental constraints remain unresolved.
The Middletown Zoning Board continued its hearing on a proposed Team Express car wash at 1580–1610 Highway 35 to April 27, 2026, after residents and an opposing planner raised questions about traffic, lot suitability and environmental constraints.
Applicant representatives presented revised plans showing additional landscaping, a fifth parking stall, depressed curbs, stormwater outlet inspections and removal of over half an acre of pavement to increase green space. Engineer Jeremy Battesh told the board the New Jersey Department of Transportation issued a letter of no interest and that New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection approvals had been issued. Battesh also described changes to queuing and circulation, and a revised stacking exhibit was submitted to show six feet of separation between queued cars.
Planner Robert Hudak testified the proposal meets conditional-use and queuing standards for an express car wash and that internal circulation should function without spillover onto Highway 35. He said proposed improvements would reduce runoff relative to existing site conditions and that the use is compatible with the zone when the constrained developable area is considered.
Opponents, including resident Jason Wombough and counsel for an absent neighbor, questioned traffic impacts and the absence of a site-specific traffic study. Opposing planner Samuel Bellamy testified the site is undersized when measured against environmental constraints, transition-area requirements and existing easements, and that the intensity of the proposed use could create circulation and access conflicts. Bellamy introduced marked plans and aerials showing nearby car washes and areas that further reduce the developable footprint.
The applicant’s owner, Tom Fuller, said operating hours would be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and the design team said the site can queue 42 vehicles on the property (not including four vehicles inside the tunnel). The board did not rule and carried the application to the April 27 meeting to allow additional testimony and materials.
Next steps: the board will accept supplemental evidence at the continued hearing and may vote or request further information on circulation, traffic analysis and any easement or right-of-way adjustments.
