If at first you don’t succeed…keep amending your plans.
Hampshire Realty is scheduled to return to the Morristown council tonight, May 22, 2018, to discuss its plans for a self-storage facility proposed for 175 Morris St.
It will be at least the fourth public airing of the plans, which originally called for five stories, on the site of a former auto repair shop and oil distribution center zoned for a maximum of three stories.
Any changes are not spelled out in the council agenda posted on the town website.
It’s still a four-story building, according to Town Attorney Vij Pawar.
He said the developer has hired a new architect, Dean Marchetto.
Marchetto has designed a number of luxury housing projects in town.
“The look is very different,” Pawar said.
Back in February, the developer presented plans for a four-story, 102,600-square-foot storage facility.
Residents expressed opposition, as they did at public workshops in 2017 and 2016.
Concerns have included traffic, noise, aesthetics and the appropriateness of the use, adjacent to new apartments.
Hampshire seeks a zoning amendment to permit the storage use, and to exceed the building height limit.
The developer has cited the proximity to Route 287, and the convenience that the facility would afford to residents moving to Morristown’s many new apartments.
Plans have included a 2,600-square-foot art studio that Hampshire has promised to lease at $1 per square foot, and an outdoor performance space.
Pawar said the revised plans call for a larger studio. No approvals are likely to be sought on Tuesday, he said.
“This is just conceptual,” the lawyer said.
