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Planning board approves amended site plan for Federal Reserve Bank campus with added screening and conditions
Summary
The board approved amendments to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York site plan at the former Chubb headquarters, accepting modest reductions to building footprints, a larger storage volume within the redevelopment height limits, a commitment to additional screening plantings and ongoing compliance with prior conditions; residents raised visibility and vegetation removal concerns.
Katherine A. Coffey, attorney for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, told the Warren Township Planning Board on Feb. 11 that the applicant sought an amendment to a previously approved site plan for Block 8, Lots 2 & 3 (the former Chubb Insurance property). Coffey said the amendments require no variances from the redevelopment plan and include a modest reduction in the cash services building footprint and a substantial reduction in the law‑enforcement training building footprint.
Project engineer Andrew Smith and architect Scott Herrick, both of whom had testified at the earlier approval, described the technical adjustments. Smith said the cash services building footprint would be reduced by roughly 2,400 square feet from the previously approved scheme and that parking, loading, site circulation, stormwater management and lighting would not change. The applicant also proposed a change to building height calculations: approximately 85 percent of the building would be built to a lower profile (about 52 feet, 3 inches) while a smaller storage block — needed for internal mechanical and storage functions — would be raised to about 69 feet, 7 inches, which Coffey said remains within the redevelopment plan’s allowances.
Smith told the board the applicant will plant eight evergreen trees (planted at about 8 feet) along Mountain View Road as an initial installment of required screening and that municipal professionals will review a final landscaping plan after building erection. "We are proposing evergreen plantings to enhance the screening there," he said.
A handful of residents questioned visibility and vegetation removal during construction. Bill Gilbert told the board he can currently see construction activity from Mountain View Road and said more vegetation was removed than he expected; he said the photographs in the applicant’s package did not match what he was seeing on the ground. "The photos show that we can't see the building, but right now we can certainly see the construction very visibly from Mountain View," Gilbert said. Smith responded that temporary construction facilities are located on the footprint of a demolished cottage and that plantings and coordination with the township will address screening.
Board professionals confirmed open items in review memos would be addressed through conditions. The board voted to approve the amended preliminary and final major site plan with the condition that the applicant continue to comply with all outstanding items from the prior approval and municipal review memos, and specifically to add screening plantings and follow up landscaping review. Coffey told the board the applicant is aiming to qualify the building for Gold LEED certification.
The motion to approve was made by Deputy Mayor Vanessa Kian and seconded by Mike Scuderi; the roll call in the record shows the listed members voting in favor and no recorded 'against' votes. The board recorded that the applicant must satisfy conditions from the prior approval to the extent they are not inconsistent with this amendment.
