FROM THE SOMERSET REPORTER (NJN Publishing)
Green Brook looks to create Village Commercial District
Thursday, September 21, 2006
By AMY S. BOBROWSKI
Staff Writer
GREEN BROOK -- The township is pursuing the creation of a new zoning district for the commercial portion of Washington Avenue.
The Village Commercial District will replace the Local Commercial District that runs from The Willows Restaurant to the Dunellen border along Washington Avenue. The district also runs about 100 feet on both the east and west sides of Washington Avenue near Greenbrook Road.
The purpose of the zoning ordinance, which the committee hopes to adopt before the end of the year, is to "create a physical settlement that provides a mix of uses including residential, commercial and civic in close proximity to one another within a neighborhood," promote pedestrian travel and the use of public areas, according to a draft of the law.
Currently, under the Local Commercial District zoning, residential and office uses are prohibited. The switch to the Village Commercial District will actually make more of the existing structures conform to zoning requirements.
"We made more existing uses conforming," Township Engineer Rick Roseberry said. "Local Commercial didn't allow residential, but half the properties in that zone were residential."
Permitted uses of the new zone include professional and business offices, banks, pharmacies, salons, restaurants, cafes, retail stores and shops, day care centers, recreational areas, residential units and mixed use structures. Prohibited uses include check cashing businesses, massage parlors, kennels, car dealerships and service stations, pawn shops and restaurants with drive-through service.
Existing uses that will not conform to the new law will be grandfathered into compliance.
The zoning will also require new developments to install sidewalks along road frontages and linking establishments, curbing and shared parking.
"You should be able to park at one business and walk to the post office, the cleaners, bank or other businesses," Roseberry said. "Instead of getting in your car and driving from place-to-place like people do now, they should have the option to walk."
Architectural standards and regulations are also included in the new measure.
Already, improvements will be made to the area with the renovation of the Willows and the future development of a CVS Pharmacy and Commerce Bank along Route 22 East.
"That (the pharmacy and bank) is not considered in the zone, but it directly abuts it," Roseberry said. "They agreed to put in ornamental lighting and sidewalks."
The new zoning ordinance is the product of the Washington Avenue Corridor Study, which was funded by a $15,000 Smart Growth Grant provided by the county.