60-Unit Housing Complex Proposed For Drum Point Road In Brick

BRICK, NJ — A hearing on a proposal to build a 60-unit housing complex on a piece of property on Drum Point Road is set to continue on Wednesday before the Brick Township Board of Adjustment.

The proposal is for a 5.34-acre property at 100 Drum Point Road that is the site of the former Leoniak Optometry office along with woods and sits in the village zone. The developer, 100 Drum Point LLC, is a group of four people, three Ramani family members owning half and James DiOrio owning the other half.

It is across the street from the Brick Presbyterian Church and just down the street from Drum Point and Emma Havens Young elementary schools.

The project is opposed by neighbors, who say it will worsen traffic along heavily traveled Drum Point Road. A petition was started on Change.org and a group of neighbors have started a GoFundMe to pay an attorney to fight the project.

The developer has proposed clearing the property and building a mix of 48 three-bedroom townhouses and a small 12-apartment building with 3-, 2- and 1-bedroom units that meet affordable housing requirements, according to documents filed with the zoning board.

Multi-family residential units are not permitted in the village zone under Brick's ordinances, and the proposal to have residential units on both the first and second stories of the apartment building is not permitted in the zone.

The project also needs a variance on the parking as it proposes parking spaces of 10 feet by 9 feet; Brick's ordinances require 10 feet by 18 feet.

Testimony was heard Oct. 9. According to the Change.org petition, engineer Ryan McDermott told the zoning board that the project will not significantly contribute to traffic on Drum Point Road, but additional details were not provided.

The neighbors oppose cutting down the wooded lot.

"The woods act as a natural buffer to mitigate flooding and reduce air pollution," the petition says. "The destruction of it must be stopped. Those who live around the woods know it to be a unique oasis of wildlife with native Pine Barrens, all too rare in a town that has already lost much of its original forests and wetlands to development."

"If this proposal gets approved, what is to stop future developments such as this coming to Brick and taking more of our natural woodlands. As residents living near the 100 Drum Point Road Woods, we are raising our voices to preserve this distinct ecosystem nesting in our neighborhood. The splendor of these woods not only offers visual solace but is a haven for wildlife, which we have cohabitated with for years," the petition says.

The group is asking "the local government to intervene and preserve the woods. By doing so, they will maintain the balance of our local ecosystem, the quiet serenity of our neighborhood, and save countless wildlife located there."

The residents' GoFundMe can be found here.

The meeting is set for 7 p.m. at the municipal building, 401 Chambers Bridge Road in Brick.