A new rendering shows a five-story building on the northern parcel of the Red Bank Train Station Redevelopment area, where an earlier version of the plan had allowed six stories. (Photo by Brian Donohue. Click to enlarge.)
By BRIAN DONOHUE
Six weeks after tabling Red Bank’s massive train station redevelopment plan, borough planners will this week consider a new version with several changes, including a reduction of the proposed maximum height of buildings on the northern parcel of the area from six to five stories.
The revisions to the draft Red Bank Train Station Redevelopment Plan also increase the proposed building setbacks to ten feet along Monmouth Street and West Street, twice the width required in the original proposal unveiled earlier this year.
And there are other tweaks to reduce the amount of commercial space and alleviate what board members and critics feared would be a wall-like effect created along West Street under the earlier version.
The changes were included in a new version of the redevelopment plan posted to the Borough website late last week, roughly six weeks after the Planning Board balked at taking a final vote on the earlier draft and decided to table it to come up with changes in response to opposition by members of the community.
A rendering in the revised plan shows the proposed bridge over what is now Oakland Street connecting two buildings on the north parcel. (above). Below is the rendering released earlier this year reflecting the previous six-story height limits in an earlier draft of the plan.
Under the new draft, the maximum allowable number of residential units remains 400, although the reduction in height and smaller footprint is expected to result in a lower number of total units when a final site plan is eventually proposed. (Click here for an explanation of the many steps in the redevelopment process. )
The creation of 400 units of housing had been seen as a crucial benchmark, however.
Denholtz, NJ Transit’s designated developer for the train station properties, had been hoping to obtain financial backing from the NJ Economic Development Corporation’s Aspire program. The Aspire program’s rules require the creation of 400 units of housing in order for a project to receive its top tier of funding.
Under the new plan, the number of units set aside as affordable housing (20 percent) and land reserved as public space (40 percent of the north parcel) remain unchanged.
The new draft also includes lower maximums for the amount of non-residential space compared to the initial version of the plan.
Those changes come in the wake of testimony from RedBank RiverCenter officials who were concerned about creating more competition for existing businesses in town, already struggling with upheavals in retail and other sectors of the economy.
RED BANK PLANNING BOARD GETS AN EARFUL ON TRAIN STATION PLAN
The redevelopment plan divides the area into two parcels: A north parcel between Chestnut and Monmouth Streets and a south parcel between Leonard and Chestnut.
The updated draft does not appear to change the maximum height of the south parcel, which remains five stories or 60 feet.
Both parcels now share the same maximum height requirement, which matches the height of the largest building in the immediate area, a five story building at 170 Monmouth Street.
The new version also includes detailed requirements to maintain the residential scale and feel of West Street, where the earlier plan had raised concerns from neighbors and planning board members about a wall-like effect created by a proposed six-story facade.
The plan reads: “The residential scale of West Street between Monmouth and Chestnut Streets shall be maintained using building setbacks, landscaping, and screening of parking garages and similar infrastructure. Individual apartment entrances with stoops, steps, porticos, and similar features are encouraged.
b. The Red Bank Armory is an important historical and recreational resource, and the design of buildings on the South Parcel of Redevelopment District A shall complement this building and mitigate negative impacts such as shadows.
The Planning Board will take up the new draft version of the redevelopment plan, including a possible vote, at its meeting Wednesday, June 11 at 7 pm at Borough Hall, 90 Monmouth Street. The meeting can also be watched on zoom at this link.
redbankgreen editor Brian Donohue may be reached via email at [email protected] or by calling or texting 848-331-8331 or yelling his name loudly as he walks by. Do you value the news coverage provided by redbankgreen? Please become a financial supporter if you haven’t already. Click here to set your own level of monthly or annual contribution.
