Teaneck—It’s been an ongoing theme of the Town Council to make way for the development of apartment complexes and mixed used spaces, including hotels, as a means of injecting new income sources in the form of property tax revenue for the township. To that end, an apartment complex proposal with 231 units jumped one step closer to approval at Teaneck’s Planning Board meeting on Monday evening, as planners requested and were granted a zoning change for the property from commercial to multi-family residential housing, amending the town’s master plan for the third time in two months.
The property in question, the abandoned Verizon building at 1500 Teaneck Road, is near the corner of State Street. The complex is being proposed by BNE Real Estate, a developer based in Livingston. Because of its proximity to bus lines on Teaneck Road, the site is seen as an ideal location for residential living and particularly for those already living in the Teaneck community who might want to downsize. The neighborhood, which does have a number of single-family residences as well as businesses, is also close to other apartment complexes on State Street, Queen Anne Road and Walraven, and is walking distance to a number of amenities.
The complex was recommended to be no taller than five stories and the amendment includes the caveat that 10 percent be set aside for affordable housing, though the developer may also have an option to pay a flat fee in lieu of the set aside.
The Planning Board voted 6-1 to approve the zoning change. The single objection came from member Kimberly Jones, who registered the view that she believed more than 10 percent of the property should be set aside for affordable housing. The council will also have to bring forward and pass an ordinance to formalize the change.
While there were several objections from residents representing a neighborhood homeowners association, comments appeared muted in comparison to last month’s zoning change proposal, most likely because the site is not near the CSX train tracks, and BNE Real Estate does not engender the same level of concern from unions or those concerned with fire safety as AvalonBay.
For the most part, Planning Board members seemed to find the proposal acceptable and in keeping with the goals that the council has favored for the past several years; to encourage developers to join the community to help build a variety of living options for residents while increasing ratables. “1500 Teaneck Road can now join our growing ranks of zoned multifamily housing sites to further enable our residents to age in place, offer new timers additional housing options, and all while further reducing the tax dependency on the single family tax class,” said Councilman Mark J. Schwartz, who serves on the Planning Board as council liaison, who also serves as JLNJ’s co-publisher.
By Elizabeth Kratz
