Video: Morristown’s updated zoning gets updated some more

Morristown Planner Phil Abramson, left, fields a question while Mayor Tim Dougherty listens, June 26, 2018. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
Morristown Planner Phil Abramson, left, fields a question while Mayor Tim Dougherty listens, June 26, 2018. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
0

 

Morristown Planner Phil Abramson has spent about two years revamping the town’s zoning ordinance, to implement goals of the town’s 2014 master plan.

He had anticipated his labors would be rewarded on Tuesday with the town council’s adoption of his ordinance.

Instead, the council rescinded its preliminary approval from earlier this month, and unanimously introduced a revamped version of the revamped zoning law.

“This is a living document, and it will continue to evolve…through real-world experience for generations to come,” Abramson said during a 25-minute presentation outlining changes to the ordinance that was introduced two weeks ago.

Those changes address concerns raised by residents and council members about increased zoning density, building heights and fast food joints.

Planner Phil Abramson explains zoning revisions, June 26, 2018. Video by Kevin Coughlin for Morristown Green:

The first version of the ordinance aimed to streamline zoning and ease the burden on the town’s zoning and planning boards by eliminating many conditional uses that required special approvals called variances — a long and expensive process for property owners and developers.

Zones were designated on Speedwell Avenue and Mills Street allowing homes to have up to five rental units. But that alarmed some residents. So the revised ordinance has reverted back to conditional uses; applications for multiple-family dwellings will continue getting reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Mayor Tim Dougherty expressed regrets about that change. Decades ago, he said, declining neighborhoods along Maple- and Wetmore avenues rebounded when the town allowed owners to subdivide their single family Victorian homes to create apartments and offices.

Dougherty cited his home on Wetmore as an example of a former one family structure that has benefited from conversion to a three-unit residence.

The prior version of the new zoning ordinance would have provided similar incentives for landlords along Speedwell to reinvest in properties “in dire need of tender loving care,” the Mayor said.

Tuesday’s revised measure only allows three or more families in newly constructed housing, and only if that housing provides adequate parking, Abramson explained.

“We took this area very seriously,” the planner said of Speedwell. It was hard to re-zone, he asserted, because its housing stock is diverse and does not follow patterns found elsewhere in Morristown.

Other revisions:

  • To allay council concerns, fast food restaurants that were to be allowed in some zones now will become conditional uses needing variances. Drive-through lanes are prohibited, and fast food venues are limited to mixed-use buildings. Abramson mentioned Tito’s Burrito’s on Washington Street as an example.
  • Areas slated for a maximum building height of six stories have been scaled down to five stories, with the exception of a section across from the 14-story Headquarters Plaza complex.  Any new six-story building in that section must recess its top floor, the same way the 40 Park luxury condos are stepped back at the uppermost level. The allowable height, meanwhile, will be scaled down from 80 feet to 72 feet.
  • The town will partner with Morristown Medical Center to study zoning along Madison Avenue.

Abramson acknowledged Councilmen Stefan Armington and Robert Iannaccone for their suggestions. Dougherty praised Abramson and his company, Topology, for following through.

“This is no small task,” said the Mayor, predicting the ordinance would rank among the town’s most successful zoning documents “for decades to come.”

The revisions are scheduled for a planning board once-over this Thursday, June 28, 2018. 

If the updated ordinance passes muster there, it returns to the council on July 10 for a public hearing and — assuming no further revisions are sought–a final vote.

If you’ve read this far… you clearly value your local news. Now we need your help to keep producing the local coverage you depend on! More people are reading Morristown Green than ever. But costs keep rising. Reporting the news takes time, money and hard work. We do it because we, like you, believe an informed citizenry is vital to a healthy community.

So please, CONTRIBUTE to MG or become a monthly SUBSCRIBER. ADVERTISE on Morristown Green. LIKE us on Facebook, FOLLOW us on Twitter, and SIGN UP for our newsletter.

LEAVE A REPLY