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Paragon Federal applies to build bank
(by Karen F. Mrnarevic - July 22, 2008)
The Zoning Board of the Borough of Westwood held a special meeting on July 14 to hear an application by Paragon Federal Credit Union for a D3 variance so that the company can construct an approximately 2,900 square-foot bank with a drive-through ATM on a piece of property located on Washington Avenue, across the street from the Borough Hall. Paragon had presented a different plan to the board at a special meeting on June 8, but was asked to revise some of the details before reappearing before the board.
On May 13, First Westwood Realty, owned by Bruce Meisel, filed an objection to the application. He said that he was joined by a co-objector, the owner of the building on the corner of Madison and Washington Avenues, directly adjacent to the property on which Paragon wishes to build the bank. The objectors had found fault with some aesthetic components of the applicant’s originally submitted design. Specifically, said Meisel, the front yard parking that was proposed would have clashed with the other properties fronting the street along the corridor.
“This is a gateway to Westwood,” said Meisel at the July 14 meeting. “My concern is that a gateway to the community be consistent with community architecture.” Paragon’s revised plan for the site included greater attention to architectural detail, a reorientation of the building and additional landscaping. The objection was dropped at the July 14 meeting after the objectors saw the revised plan, but the board stressed that the settlement agreement between the objectors and the applicant would have no bearing on the board’s decision.
“The board keeps an open mind on everything until we hear all of the testimony and see all of the evidence,” said Zoning Board Chairman Bill Martin in a phone interview. “We have to be fair to the applicant, we have to make decisions that are consistent with the master plan.”
Paragon’s application to the Zoning Board is a bifurcated application, meaning that it has been divided into two parts. The first part is an application for a D3 use variance. If the D3 variance is approved, the next step would be for the applicant to come up with a more detailed site plan and submit it, along with any additional variance requests, to the board for approval.
One possible additional variance would be a C variance for the drive-through ATM structure. Since the property is triangular, the site technically has three “front yards” as defined by law. That means that the drive-through would be a front yard accessory structure, requiring a variance.
Although the details of Paragon’s plans for the may change in upcoming weeks, there are certain elements that could remain on the plan that the company presents to the board at its next regular meeting on Aug. 4. For instance, the square footage of the main building, experts for the applicant testified on July 14, will likely remain approximately 2,900, with the entrance on the side of the building opposite the side facing Washington Avenue. Parking would be in the rear of the bank, as would the drive-through ATM. There would be an entrance driveway to the right of the front of the bank (on Washington Avenue) and an exit driveway to the left. There would also be an entrance/ exit driveway onto Irvington Street.
Currently, there are two houses on the property on which Paragon is proposing to build its bank. One, said Martin, is “of great historic value.” That house, on the left side of the property, facing Washington Avenue, would be preserved by Paragon and converted into office space. The house to the right of that, Martin said, is “of diminished historic value,” due to upkeep and maintenance issues. It would be demolished to make way for the construction of the bank. A historic house on the corner of Washington Avenue and Irvington Street is not a part of the property, nor is the mixed-use structure on the corner of Washington and Madison Avenues.
Preserving historic architecture was not the only concern of the zoning board, however. Martin said that one of the reasons the board asked Paragon to “go back to the drawing board, so to speak,” was to figure out if two very large maple trees on the property could be saved. Based on Paragon’s current preliminary plans, those trees would be eliminated to construct a parking lot to the rear of the bank.
“I wanted to see if it was possible to save one or both of those 36-inch caliber maple trees on the property,” said Martin in a phone interview. “If they can do that, in my mind it goes a long way regarding [the board’s judgment of whether] the site is suitable to their application.”
While some board members seemed comfortable voting on the bifurcated portion of the application at the July 14 meeting, Martin urged them to consider the possibility that the applicant might not make board-suggested changes to the site plan in that case. “I would be more comfortable seeing that they [the applicant] were actually able to accomplish what we were discussing,” explained Martin. “I suggested we might want to let them explore this a little bit more with the suggestions we made.”
Martin urges members of the community to participate in the zoning application process and attend the next public meeting. “I would love to get feedback at the meetings so that the applicant can hear that.”
Karen F. Mrnarevic's e-mail address is Mrnarevic@northjersey.com.
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