You could tell it was getting late and everyone was a bit tired. The usually genial Planning Board chairman in Atlantic Highlands, John McGoldrick, got a bit sharp with a couple of residents just short of an hour before midnight, on a week day night, reminding them that one portion of the public hearing was reserved for questions, and there would be plenty of time at the next meeting to give comments. Besides, he went on, “we’re all volunteers.”
Me thinks he was more than one of the board members frustrated and feeling both tired and perhaps annoyed about some of the history of the Carton Brewery company.
Martin Hawley, because he’s always been an astute and interested knowledgeable resident and member, remembers everything about past very long meetings; he wants more attention paid to whatever is permitted whenever this variance gets approved. He pointed out that the same company asking for this year’s variances didn’t even fulfill the ones they’ve gotten in the past. Talk about wasting volunteers’ time! That as a great question, too …
What happens to those past conditions?
Is anyone responsible for insuring that the conditions are actually met?
Do they still exist or does new approval erase those old variances?
And Ms. Depasca, one of the very highly educated and very wise women on the board, wants to be sure the residents of the borough are not given second place in consideration when it comes to parking places. They face that problem every day, she pointed out, and having three more apartments, each with two bedrooms and probably, if it goes by the norm these days, more than two vehicles for each, doesn’t sound like the residents are being considered.
But the board itself had to take a bit of a scolding from Mark Fisher, who doesn’t miss many meetings … He researches every little thing, and even writes down all his questions so he’s sure to remember them all, back-up included. As good-natured and friendly as they all are with this resident, they also know he knows what he’s talking about and likes to be sure things are done right. Certainly hope, after hearing Mark’s questions on safety, the board also reaches out to the fire chief for input and approvals as well. Loved how Mark had photos of the trash pile outside on the Carton property, then pointed out that in one of those earlier variance approvals they got, they promised to keep it all inside.
So that brings up the question. Who is it exactly that checks to be certain that the conditions given with so many variances are actually followed through? Doubt it’s the code enforcement officer, since he doesn’t attend planning board meetings and probably doesn’t have to read each approval and check a few years later to see if conditions like the trash location are being taken care of.
It certainly isn’t a planning board member since they’re all volunteers.
Doubt it is the engineer, not only because he doesn’t live in town, but it just doesn’t sound like it should be his job.
So is there actually a particular person or position that is assigned to keep track of variance approvals once they’re granted?
And that doesn’t even touch on the tasting room. Stories at the meeting about busloads of people coming, loud music, entertainment, big wedding receptions … none of these things sound like a tasting room idea of having a few ounces of beer in two hours to taste the quality of a variety of products. Has anyone enforced or know the difference between a Tasting Room and a great tavern in the middle of town?
There are some more questions that need to be answered.
For instance, the principal use of the building. With statements at the meeting that the Brewery is cutting back its brewing operations by thousands of barrels, and all these new uses … a restaurant, three apartments, an event space for private parties … Is brewing still the principal use of the Carton Brewery building?
And if the smaller building is scheduled to be used for storage only, wouldn’t that make it an accessory building to the principal use? The plans show there are two lots included for this application. Yet the borough codes dictate that an accessory building must be located on the same lot as the principal use. It does appear there will be an awful lot more questions when the hearing continues next month.
It took a lot of complaining about parking and the lack thereof at the meeting before the board decided to ask the firm for a traffic survey. However, they did not stipulate how or when it was to be done, or how many times a day or weekend it should be done.
There’s certainly a difference between both parking and driving along First Avenue whether the survey is taken when Sea Streak customers are hastily making their way home from the ferry after a day’s work and 10 a.m. in the morning. As well as a big difference in parking in that area of Carton Brewery on a weekday morning or a Friday night or Sunday afternoon when the live theater on First Avenue has an exciting show or program going on.
That’s not even counting Jaspen’s Hardware where, besides being so well supplied with every possible thing any home might need, the staff is always so nice and friendly. Will purchasers who would be vying for the same spaces more people are now going to want really to continue to shop here if it means toting their paint cans or wheelbarrows or other heavy supplies a few blocks further?
There is no doubt the Cartons are a great local family and have been a part of the community for generations. But when they first opened the First Avenue building, they didn’t take any steps to beautify it like they want to do today. They say they are reducing their business from 25,000 to 5,000 barrels a day and that’s one of the reasons for the changes and additional businesses in the building.
There are still a lot of questions to be answered, a lot of promises to be kept. In the end, Carton Brewery will probably get the variances they are seeking, but with lots more changes then they have shown so far.
Because that’s what planning boards do.
They’re designed to give property owners the right to break the laws the governing bodies have set up to keep the borough looking like the Master Plan designed to keep it like it is. They just make what is presented to them a bit more in keeping with that Plan and a bit easier for the residents to accept. That is, until all of a sudden, people who have lived here a few years suddenly get the idea it isn’t the old town it used to be.
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