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At a glance: votes and conditions from Highland Park ZBA meeting on Middlesex Water application
Summary
Key board actions: (1) motion to deem application complete and accept checklist waivers passed; (2) consolidated approval of d‑ and c‑variances, steep‑slope exception and site plan with conditions passed by the required affirmative votes; board required recorded easements, DEP/Edison approvals, truck‑scheduling contract language and landscaping guarantees.
The Highland Park Zoning Board took two principal formal steps on July 27 related to the Middlesex Water application.
First, the board voted to deem the application administratively complete and to accept the applicant’s requested checklist waivers. That motion was moved and seconded during the completeness discussion and passed on a roll call. Second, after testimony, deliberation and a series of proposed conditions, the board took consolidated votes to grant the requested d‑ and c‑variances (access road, bioretention/stormwater, stream‑corridor overlay relief; lot size/depth pre‑existing conditions), as well as a steep‑slope exception. The chair reported the motion passed with the affirmative votes necessary under the municipal rules (the chair cited a 6–1 tally on a primary motion).
The approvals are conditional. The board listed expected conditions to be set in the resolution: recorded easement agreements (Rutgers and the warehouse owner) that permit use of off‑site access; vendor contract provisions to stagger GAC deliveries and restrict them to daytime weekday hours; final DEP and Edison approvals for stormwater/flood hazard work; a landscaping and replacement guarantee for the new plantings; and consultant review and sign‑off of final plans. The board advised the applicant to return easement and permit documentation for consultant review prior to issuance of any construction access.
