Master plan charts future of Hazlet
Planning Board approves update of 30-year-old plan
BY JAMIE ROMM Staff Writer
If you want to meet the future, you need a plan, and they're coming up with a new one in Hazlet.

A historic preservation plan, revitalization of the Route 36 corridor and development options for the train station area are recommendations in a re-examination of the Hazlet Township master plan.

It's been almost 30 years since the township's master plan was drafted, and on April 17 the Hazlet Planning Board gave its approval to a future vision for the township by adopting a broadscope Master Plan Re-examination Report prepared by Maser Consulting.

Planning Board members and Hazlet professionals, along with master plan special counsel Greg Vella, discussed the proposed plan at an open public forum for residents.

The meeting ended with adoption of the Master Plan Re-examination Report. The next step is for the Township Committee to review the proposals and take action on what is termed a "comprehensive update" of the master plan.

The report's summary notes that Hazlet is a 5.6-square-mile community that is home to 21,000 residents.

The report on the mission of the proposed plan highlights how out of date the current master plan actually is.

"Prepare a comprehensiveMaster Plan updating and expanding the master plan elements," the report states. "The current Master Plan was adopted in 1978 and does not reflect current conditions and planning goals."

Vella, the former Planning Board attorney, was retained by the Township Committee to help with the re-examination.

"The master plan is still a living, breathing document," Vella said. "There have been some updates over the years, but we need to decide what and how much change is needed."

According to the report, "the re-examination is long overdue.

"As an older, developed community, Hazlet is now in the next stage of its planning and development cycle," the report states. "Its older infrastructure requires replacement and maintenance. Many challenges present themselves to the township to address these infrastructure needs with limited funds."

In Hazlet from 2000-2005 there has been a net growth of only 38 residential properties and over 300,000 square feet of new, non-residential construction, the majority in retail and office uses, according to the report.

The re-examination makes recommendations in four areas to update the 1978 plan: land use, traffic, community facilities and housing.

"It's basically what you want the town to look like in the future," Vella said. "This plan will shape Hazlet into what we want and need it to be."

Township Planner Marcia Shiffman presented a summary of the new master plan in which she summarized the recommendations.

In her presentation on land-use recommendations, Shiffman touched on nine separate issues.

"We want to prepare the Land Use Plan Element of the Master Plan as part of the next step in the Hazlet planning program," Shiffman said. "The land-use plan should concentrate on four focus areas: Waackaack Creek, Veterans Park, Natco Lake/Eastern Route 36 and Western Route 36."

She also discussed revitalization of the Route 36 corridor as a major part of the land-use plan.

Also under land use, the report recommends that the township use the recently completed Bayshore Region Strategic Plan as a planning tool and continue to work with neighboring municipalities and Monmouth County to implement strategies.

The Bayshore Region Strategic Plan represents a regional perspective on planning initiatives appropriate for the Bayshore. The four elements of the Bayshore plan are economic development, waterfront and open space, transportation and housing.

Shiffman said evaluating and implementing updated zoning and site-planning regulations include mobile home park overlay zones; refined R-100 and R-70 bulk standards; revised sign standards; and a new/updated design guidelines handbook.

The overlay zones for mobile home parks was one of the main concerns among residents in attendance, who expressed concern that the overlay zone would cause park owners to close the parks.

"What do we do if we are told that they are closing the park?" resident Nicholas Pascucci asked. "Some of these park owners do not take the best care of the parks. How will this help the situation?"

Vella said that while parts of the re-examination plan look into cleaning up and maintaining the mobile parks, this recommendation is mostly to "protect the township."

Later in the meeting, resident William Lawton had more questions regarding the mobile home park zoning issue.

"My main thing with this is the township hasn't really looked into the actual mobile parks," Lawton said. "We should have an advisory committee to see what really needs to be done, along with members of the Mobile Home Owners Association to help conditions in these parks.We've been complaining for years. Throwing money at the landlords is not the answer."

Vella said that this is under consideration.

L

and use recommendations also include

evaluating development options for the Hazlet train station area in coordination with NJ Transit, and encouraging transit-related uses for the vacant, underused properties in the train station area.

Preparing a historic preservation plan to preserve the remaining historic sites within the township is a recommendation. The report notes that there is interest in preserving and protecting the remaining cultural elements of the township's history.

"The township historian has begun to compile a list of historic properties," the report states. "Currently there are no properties within the township listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places.

"This would initially include preparation of a historic property survey working with the township historian," the report states. "The township should consider becoming a Certified Local Government through the New Jersey Historic Preservation Office tomake the township eligible for grants and technical assistance. Efforts in this area should be coordinated with Open Space Advisory Council."

Under traffic plan recommendations, Shiffman listed suggestions that include expanding parking at the train station and updating the traffic plan element to reflect current conditions and problem areas.

"We need to work with the New Jersey Department of Transportation and the county to implement Route 36 road improvements as discussed in the Bayshore Strategic Plan," Shiffman said. "Also to work with NJ Transit to evaluate parking expansion options at the Hazlet train station, such as a parking deck or possibly a mixed-use structure to take advantage of this location."

There are currently 183 annual permit spaces under township lease from NJ Transit with 70 non-discriminating daily spaces.

NJ Transit recently completed a $6.1 million renovation of the station that included expanded parking, heated glass passenger enclosures, new lights, handicapped access and mosaics depicting the history of the Bayshore.

Recommendations for community facilities include preparing and adopting a separate recreation plan element of the master plan to address future recreation needs and services, and adoption of a recreation facilities funding ordinance.

The recommendations also call for open space and conservation plan elements of the master plan.

"We need to review riparian corridors to identify acquisition sites and environmentally sensitive areas and consider including them as Critical Environment Sites in the state plan," Shiffman said. "Also to seek funding to implement water quality infiltration systems along all outfalls in the township waterways to improve water quality."

Recommendations for a housing plan note that Hazlet should adopt a Housing Element and Fair Share Plan and then file the plan with the New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) for substantive certification.

"We are looking to participate in the Monmouth County housing rehabilitation program to provide funds to low- and moderate income families to address the township's COAH rehabilitation obligation," Shiffman said. "Inventory and assessing mobile home parks and to develop recommendations to encourage an upgrading of these facilities such as an overlay zone is also part of this plan."

The public may review copies of the proposed Master Plan Re-examination Report during normal business hours (8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.) at the Hazlet Township Municipal Building located at 1766 Union Ave.