Rezoning Dunnell Road--the stretch bordering the west side of Memorial Park from the fire house to the train station--has been a topic of conversation at Township meetings for months.

The topic has come up as a subsidiary discussion related the newly adopted redevelopment plan for the former police station on Dunnell Road. Opponents and proponents of that plan alike felt that a broader look at the neighborhood--and not just one property--would be more appropriate and beneficial to the town.

The Planning Board even recommended formally that the Township move to rezone the area to match the recommendations for height restrictions and setbacks that the Board suggested to the Township Committee. The Planning Board's recommendations for the police station site were more restrictive than existing zoning for the adjacent properties, where allowances for appurtenances could take building heights to 60' all in. The Board had recommended 50' all in for the police station site.

Last night, the Township held a discussion item on the topic of making modifications to the zoning for the area. Jerry Ryan observed that any action by the Township Committee will "ultimately end up as a zoning ordinance change." As such, Ryan said, the Planning Board is involved by statute. Ryan wrote in an email after the meeting, "In my view it makes not much difference in what order we engage the Planning Board, and the Planning Board has asked to be engaged on this, so let's engage them."

Ryan added that the Planning Board is empowered to form whatever
advisory committees or citizen committees it thinks necessary. He also noted that the Town will begin re-examining its Master Plan in 2010. Rezoning for Dunnell Road could be folded into this process.

Mayor Vic DeLuca observed that the Planning Board will have more time to devote to this issue in the next few months--as the Township Committee is wrangling with what promises to be a difficult budget.

Ryan made a motion to refer "modification of the zoning provision along the west side of Dunnell Road, in the immediate neighbrohood of the Dunnell Road Police Building, to be consistent with the bulk requirements" of the redevelopment plan to the Planning Board.

The motion passed 4-1, with Deputy Mayor Fred Profeta dissenting.