Babcock & Brown Storage Specialists and Hackensack/Bogota Property first came to the zoning board in July requesting a use variance to rework the building into a storage facility. The property is zoned for single-family residences.

The developers’ contract with the building owners, the Begoon Brothers, expires on Jan. 15, at which point the owners are free to sell the property to another party, according to ads placed in area newspapers. One ad in particular, claiming to be from the "Concerned Citizens of North Arlington," advocated a "yes" vote on the application. No residents have stepped forward to say they belong to the Concerned Citizens of North Arlington.

Paul Gavin, an attorney for Hackensack/Bogota property who is brokering the deal between the Begoons and Babcock & Brown, said he believed a vocal group of residents were actively involved in the fate of the property. "They are very concerned, evidently, that they’re gonna end up with a condo project or residential or something like that that’ll be a negative impact," he said.

Gavin did not answer questions regarding who may have placed the ad. Bernadette Costantino, a Halsey Place resident living adjacent to the property and the most vocal resident at meetings concerning the property, did not know who placed the advertisement, but had no qualms with the proposal.

"I was skeptical when it started. Except for it being just idle, I think it’s an acceptable use. I’m willing to not stand in their way," said Costantino.

Residents in attendance at the December zoning board meeting plead with the board to make a decision on the property. Costantino said she was impressed with the proposed landscaping for the property and pleased with the developers’ efforts to add fencing at the requests of residents. "They have agreed to quite a few things," she said.

The developers plan to revamp the building, eliminating the familiar eyesore from Schuyler Avenue and add new landscaping. The developers also claim the property will bring in $195,000 annually in property taxes, up from the $63,920 the owners currently pay.

Zoning board President Nick Antonicello said the owners appealed to lower the assessed value of the property twice. Currently the property is assessed at $1.7 million, according to Gavin. Once improvements are made, Gavin estimated the new value to increase to $5 million. However, he admitted only the tax assessor can decide on the assessed value.

The developers will invest between $5 and $7.5 million to purchase the property and plan on adding on millions in improvements.

Since the mattress factory boarded up in 2004, several developers have come up with plans informally and formally to redevelop the property for multi-family housing. The largest was CNL developers, who sought to place 196 units on the property.

Gavin and Babcock and Brown Storage Specialists attorney Armen McOmber argued that the storage facility would have a much lower impact on municipal services than a multi-family development, or any residential development in general.

The property is zoned for one-family homes, as well as residences for the developmentally disabled or domestic abuse victims, houses of worship, schools or essential services. Public uses such as schools or houses of worship would not generate tax revenue for the borough.

Redevelopment has been a hot issue in North Arlington for years, particularly since EnCap-affiliated redeveloper Cherokee sued the borough for failing to commence eminent domain proceedings on Porete Avenue businesses to make way for a 1,625-unit residential development in the southeast corner of town.

Cherokee stopped giving North Arlington millions in impact fees, creating a budget shortfall, which caused taxes to rise by 33 percent.

While spending remains relatively low when compared to neighboring towns, the borough has few commercial ratables to rely on, leaving homeowners with the tax burden.

According to an ad in area newspapers placed by the developers, the self-storage facility could be the fifth largest taxpayer in the borough, behind AMB property warehouse on Porete Avenue, Cherokee/EnCap, the Riverview Garden Apartments and the Ridge Apartments.

The zoning board raised concerns about truck noise at all hours, security concerns at the facility and questioned the demand for a storage facility. The building will be open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. from Monday through Saturday and from 8 a.m. though 6 p.m. on Sundays, as a condition for approval. Tractor-trailers will not be permitted at the facility.

Anyone hoping to lease a storage unit would need to submit a driver’s license and fingerprints, and security cameras would be installed in the building with input from the police department. The police would also be permitted to search the facility. However, items placed in the facility would not be screened and cameras would not be in the storage units themselves, as with any other storage facility, according to the developers.