Lopatcong planning board approves Prime Group’s 17,043‑sq‑ft storage addition, grants variances

The Lopatcong Township Planning Board on June 24 granted final approval to Prime Group Holdings LLC to add a 17,043‑square‑foot self‑storage building to an existing storage facility on U.S. Route 22 that straddles Lopatcong and Greenwich townships.

The approval included relief from several township bulk standards. Planning counsel and the applicant said the combined tract (the Lopatcong portion is about 1.67 acres and the Greenwich portion about 3.903 acres for a total of roughly 5.51 acres) does not meet the HB zone’s 15‑acre minimum; the site likewise falls short of the township’s 80,000‑square‑foot minimum storage‑area threshold when current and proposed indoor area are combined (existing ≈54,000 sq ft + proposed 17,043 sq ft ≈71,043 sq ft). The board also granted a 5‑ft variance from a 25‑ft required landscape buffer (the plan shows a 20‑ft buffer) and acknowledged several pre‑existing nonconformities, including a billboard installed in the mid‑1990s that the applicant called a pre‑existing nonconforming use.

“The only element that was basically holding up completeness on the application was the receipt of the Highlands consistency determination letter,” applicant attorney Craig Bosong told the board, and he said that letter had been received and shared with the board secretary. “We’ve provided the notice and everything so the board has jurisdiction to hear this application this evening,” Bosong said.

Engineer Andrew Ranger, testifying for the applicant, described the proposed site work and stormwater plan. “So we are proposing a one‑story self storage building totaling 17,043 ft with internal asphalt driveways surrounding the new building,” Ranger said, adding the plan includes a new bio‑retention basin to treat runoff, modifications to an existing infiltration basin, and a new septic system to serve the single office employee. He told the board the applicant submitted an application to the state Department of Transportation for a letter of no interest and had prepared stormwater calculations using conservative assumptions for the carbonate‑rock district.

Architect James Dankovic (BWD Architects) said the building will contain a mix of interior and exterior units, with about 85 interior units and about 20 exterior units, interior units being climate controlled and accessed by coded keypad. “It’ll be type two non‑combustible and fully sprinkler,” Dankovic said.

Landscape architect Steven Hobbs reported that a Highlands‑compliant tree inventory and forest determination were completed. “Based on those calculations, a total of seven replacement trees are required. A total of 90 replacement trees are proposed on the site and in accordance with the township ordinance, the remaining 17 replacement trees will be satisfied through a contribution to the township tree fund,” Hobbs said. He also said the planting plan was revised to remove non‑native species and to use native, drought‑tolerant species appropriate for the Highlands region.

Board members and counsel spent substantial time on jurisdictional and variance issues because the property is bisected by the municipal boundary. Counsel cited case law about measuring setbacks on split municipal lots; the board discussed whether the site should be treated as one economic unit for parking and other standards even though part of the parcel lies in a neighboring municipality. The applicant said it could shift or shorten the building if the board chose not to grant the 5‑ft buffer variance, but asked the board for relief to preserve a straightforward driveway alignment and limit additional impervious surface.

The board’s motion approving final site‑plan and variance relief included standard compliance conditions: submission of engineered retaining‑wall plans (including guardrail and fencing details), geotechnical reports and drilling as part of foundation and stormwater design, coordination and permit documentation from the fire official for the fire department connection (FDC), a tree‑removal permit and final landscape plan meeting the buffer planting standard, and compliance with all conditions attached to the Highlands Council consistency determination. The applicant and its consultants pledged to provide wheel stops and other minor engineering revisions called for in the board engineer’s June 19 review letter.

The board approved the motion by voice vote; the transcript records affirmative responses from members and the chair said the board would memorialize the approval and its conditions in a written resolution at the next meeting. The applicant must also obtain approvals from Greenwich Township for that portion of the property and provide the DOT no‑interest letter and final technical plans before building permits will be issued.

The planning board’s decision advances the project to the next procedural step but leaves technical compliance and required permits to be resolved before construction begins.