Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Upgrades to antiquated piping may be necessary to handle sewage from four proposed housing developments.
Four proposed housing developments in the Ridgewood downtown might require the village to replace piping to handle sewage flow, according to a report in The Ridgewood News. Village Engineer Chris Rutishauser said additional piping may be needed in some locations to accommodate sewage, particularly around Ridgewood Station, according to the report. Much of the village's piping is 80-90 years old, he said, adding that he didn't think the developments themselves would require an upgrade at the wastewater control plant. The developers could be on the hook for any additional infrastructure changes their projects bring to town, including traffic upgrades. Proposed are the 114-unit Ridgewood Station at the old Ken Smith site; the 106 unit Dayton …
Sunday, January 27, 2013
"Chasing away reinvestment" is not a solution, according to one reader.
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Sunday, January 27
It is very common in NJ towns to hear public outcry when significant redevelopment is proposed. More kids to teach, more cars to park, and a new streetscape. These are all valid concerns. Ridgewood is not an island. It shares these issues with most NJ towns. Many of these communities have moved ahead with projects and the worse-case fears never materialize. Once built, redevelopment projects quickly become part of the fabric of the community. The new vitality encourages more reinvestment especially in the smaller properties nearby. Ridgewood’s population/household density is not remarkable in the county or the state. I’m not sure, but since the 80’s Ridgewood like many NJ towns has seen a decline in population. Almost every town does a …
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Testifying on behalf of the developer, experts said they believe the 114-unit development at Ken Smith Motors will generate fewer than 10 school kids. Concerns also remain over parking and traffic.
A newly-proposed transit-oriented development at the Ken Smith Ford site would likely generate few school children while accommodating for parking demand, expert witnesses testified Tuesday night at the planning board meeting. But Ridgewood planning board members maintained some skepticism and also expressed worry about traffic impacts on the dangerous Franklin Avenue. Dubbed "Ridgewood Station," the plans envision a St. Mark's-inspired 137,000 square foot mixed use development on Franklin and Chestnut avenues, comprised of 114 luxury housing units and just over 7,000 square feet of retail space. The developer has appealed to the planning board to create an overlay zone allowing for higher densities around the Ridgewood train line, with …
40.981342
-74.119463
Ken Smith Motors
15 Franklin Ave, Ridgewood, NJ
/articles/few-school-kids-less-traffic-expected-at-ridgewood-station-experts-testify
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/locations/8644019
Sunday, January 6, 2013
The first details of the 114-unit housing project at the Ken Smith Ford site are expected Monday night, as well as an update on the Sealfons building proposal.
Two of the most controversial downtown housing development proposals in Ridgewood will be fleshed out Monday night at a special planning board meeting. In September, Patch broke the news that the Ken Smith dealership property on Franklin Avenue is the site of a proposed 114-unit luxury apartment project with 11,0000 square feet of retail space. On Monday night, the first official governmental discussion will be held, lumped into the larger downtown housing development study undertaken by Village Planner Blais Brancheau. Dinallo Construction Corp., the developer, is scheduled to make a formal presentation, according to the agenda. The developers from 257 Ridgewood Avenue LLC. – headed by Ridgewood library board president John Saraceno – …
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Four separate plans have been filed to build apartment complexes in Ridgewood's downtown.
Village zoning officials will be debating the controversial issue of proposed zoning policies for multifamiy housing in Ridgewood's downtown on Wednesday, Nov. 14. The meeting – first planned for Nov. 6 but canceled due to Hurricane Sandy – will take place in the senior center of Village Hall at 7:30 p.m. Village Planner Blais Brancheau spent about eight months determining what he felt was an appropriate scale to potential housing developments in the downtown. In a 5-page checklist, he sought to include desired lot sizes, traffc congestion, density, building height, proximity to public transit and other points. The checklist will likely be discussed on Wednesday. Currently, two projects are in front of the zoning board (Chestnut Village …
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
The proposed 106-unit luxury apartment complex on South Broad Street have been "de-massed" to appear as two buildings joined at the center.
With a series of staggered peaks towering above 106 high-end apartments set behind the Ridgewood rail line, sketches of the Tudor-style housing proposal "The Dayton" on South Broad Street elicit a range of opinions. Scott Loventhal, of developer Garden Homes, says major revisions have "de-massed" the proposed five-story luxury apartment building on the land that had previously been Brogan Cadillac. Garden Homes is appealing for the property to be re-zoned to allow for residential uses; and it's just one of several properties being studied by Ridgewood to assess if zone changes to allow for residential housing downtown should be sought, and if so, what regulations should be in place. The purchase of a small adjoining property has helped …
40.97698
-74.121369
150 S Broad St, Ridgewood, NJ
/articles/poll-dig-the-design-of-dayton-housing-project
/locations/7894833
Monday, September 17, 2012
Village Planner Blais Brancheau to present his findings of a seven-month-long study on residential housing stock in the Central Business District.
The proposed project to transform the old Brogan Cadillac dealership on Broad Street into luxury apartments steps has been scaled down, the developer's attorney said. According to attorney Tom Wells, representing developer Garden Homes, the "Dayton" has seen major revisions in the number of units as well as the size of the building. The planning board will see the new look of the Dayton on Tuesday night. Village Planner Blais Brancheau will be presenting the findings of his extended study of housing stock downtown, along with the help of a traffic engineer. Developers behind "The Dayton" and the proposed 52-unit complex on Chestnut Street, known as "Chestnut Village", applied to have their properties rezoned in the Master Plan. Another …
Thursday, July 5, 2012
A summer of 2014 construction target for two large multi-family housing projects an "optimistic" estimate, Village Planner says.
Pressed by a resident over believed lack of progress on large multi-family housing proposals in the downtown, Village Planner Blais Brancheau said bricks might be laid in spring of 2013 and finished by summer of 2014 if things go exceedingly well. Developers for a 120-unit "luxury" proposal on S. Broad St. and a 62-unit complex on Chestnut St. appealed to the planning board in 2011 to request a zone change to the Master Plan. The process funneled into a comprehensive study of housing stock and the overall approprirateness of multi-family housing downtown. But Paul Levin, of Graydon Terrace, was anxious to find out when ground could break. It would largely determine whether he stayed in Ridgewood or not, he said. "My frustration is this has…
Monday, March 26, 2012
The Ridgewood News reports the planning board hopes to focus on cleaning up portions of the Master Plan, as well as gaining momentum in the housing study; rescinding the 'H-Zone' ordinance is not on the list.
The Ridgewood Planning Board hunkered down and determined its goals for 2012, according to a report from The Ridgewood News. The weekly village paper reports the primary goal of the planning board is to do some 'housekeeping' on the Master Plan by more clearly incorporating amendments into specific zones. The report also notes the other major goal includes completing the study of the downtown housing stock; three major developments have been proposed in recent months, two at the planning board and one at the zoning board. The last time the planning board sat down and set goals, the list was quite different. In September 2010, the list most notably included sending an ordinance on the "H-Zone" decision to the council, as well as addressing …
Bill Porterfield
5:11 pm on Tuesday, March 12, 2013
As far as i can see, these developments only benefit the developers and the storefronts. It doesnt benefit homeowners in Ridgewood. I believe these are all rentals. It will forever downgrade the overall value of Ridgewood. more ›