Developers have proposed a three-level, 15,000 square foot mixed-use building, including 24 residential units and space for up to six retail establishments, along a stretch of Paterson Avenue in East Rutherford.

The project, tentatively entitled "Nanno’s Place," would feature approximately nine thousand square feet of retail space on the building’s ground level, with 14 one-bedroom and 10 two-bedroom condominiums or apartments constituting the second and third levels. Also planned are landscaped green spaces, an outdoor waste disposal area, ninety-plus surface parking spaces, and a gated underground parking facility with elevator access to serve the building’s residents.

The site under consideration, located at 480-484 Paterson Ave. near the intersection of Poplar, currently houses a vacant 30,000 square foot warehouse and is zoned for light industrial use. As a result, builders are seeking a broad usage variance from the East Rutherford Zoning Board of Adjustments, which would subsume allowances for aesthetic embellishments along with exceptions for height and side-yard restrictions.

Borough ordinances for light industrial areas restrict building height to two stories, and require 20 feet of lateral space between structures. The current proposal calls for three above-ground stories, and allows only 1.5 feet and zero feet, respectively, between adjacent buildings.

The tight fit is a concern for the Zoning Board and neighbors alike. Robert Krawiec, of Forked River, owns the property at 468 Paterson Ave. that would abut the new building. "Zero feet of space impedes on future worth of my property," Kraweic said during public comments at the Feb. 7 meeting of the Board. "It doesn’t give me any room to maintain my building."

Board members seem inclined to agree, and are likely to require at least three to five feet of lateral space between the buildings for maintenance purposes, and to improve ingress and egress during emergencies.

The most attractive option available to the development group, headed by GFM Contractors Incorporated of Hammonton, involves utilizing about 30 feet of frontage along railway owned by ConRail to accommodate the extra space. The developers currently have de facto control of the land under an expired five-year lease with ConRail that the latter has not sought to renew. As such, the developers’ ability to adjust their plans to the board’s requirements is subject to the renewal of the lease.

Drainage presents another concern for neighbors. Barry Glick and Donald Kretz, both owners of properties that would abut Nanno’s Place along Poplar Street, voiced concerns that the new development could exacerbate flooding issues on the block.

"Flooding is a major problem," said Glick. "And Poplar Street has become more prone to flooding since the mall development across Paterson Avenue came in."

While the project’s lead engineer, Matthew Clark of MCB Engineering Associates in Totowa, declined to comment for this article, citing the evolving state of the proposal, the preliminary drainage plan for the site is likelier to alleviate flooding than it is to worsen it. In its current state, the site is completely uncontrolled for drainage. The new plan would reduce flood-prone impervious space, increase green space, and implement several graded drainage inlets.

The Zoning Board has put off a vote on the proposal until at least March, pending the required changes and testimony from traffic and planning experts. Because the Nanno’s Place development would disturb less than one acre of land, it is not classified as a major redevelopment and is therefore not subject to approval by the borough’s separate Planning Board, which oversees large-scale developments. However, since Paterson Avenue is a county road, the proposal must also gain approval from county authorities.

The current plan calls for three two-bedroom and two one-bedroom units to be reserved for affordable housing, as per the revised third round rules of the New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing, which are pending approval by the New Jersey Appellate Court. Whether the units will be apartments or condos has yet to be decided and will depend on market forces.