Knickerbocker Country Club proposes court relocations, major soil-moving and drainage changes

The Knickerbocker Country Club asked the Tenafly Planning Board for site-plan approval and a major soil-moving permit to reconfigure courts, expand short-game practice facilities and change the site's drainage. Attorney Matthew Capizzi described a plan to move four tennis courts from the Erledon Road side of the property to a northwesterly location set back about 50 feet with a landscaped berm; two padel courts and additional pickleball courts would be added to the site alongside a new short-game area and reworked driving-range landing.

Engineer Jeffrey Morris of Boswell Engineering said the plan routes much of the site's runoff to newly configured detention ponds and towards Erledon Road, and he characterized the net effect as a reduction of peak runoff to properties on Palmer Avenue. "the peak runoff from the site will not increase and that 50% of the drainage area contributing to the backyards of houses on Palmer Avenue will be eliminated," Morris testified. He also said the project shows a net import of about 6,000 cubic yards of material for regrading and that the design will comply with current stormwater rules, which require projecting the 100-year storm and providing for a 25% design increase over existing conditions.

Board members pressed the applicant on tree removal, lighting, noise and flood risk. Morris said approximately 96 trees will be removed and 237 trees are required for mitigation; 115 of the required mitigation trees are proposed to be handled by payment into a tree trust or by planting elsewhere on the lot. Lighting around the short-game area will be shielded and lights located on the easterly side and down the center of the courts will be turned off by 10 p.m., he said. The public hearing was left open for additional public questions when the application resumes.