Dozens Of Residents Protest Edison Warehouse Project

EDISON, NJ — More than 100 residents gathered Wednesday outside the site of the former Charlie Brown's restaurant to protest a developer’s plan to build 23 townhomes on Plainfield Road.

Several elected officials also attended the rally, including Councilman Ajay Patil, BOE President Jerry Shi, BOE representatives Biral Patel and Shivi Madhukar, Mayoral candidate Keith Hahn and his team, and Margot Harris, who is running for council.

"It was a great sense of community coming together to have their voices heard to oppose this terrible project," said rally organizer Shweta Bhat.

The project by Markim Developers seeks to demolish the now-shuttered restaurant to build three-bedroom townhouses on the 2-acre site. The lot area required for the project is 100 acres.

Residents learned about the new project only a few weeks ago. They began organizing in mid-June and on June 28, started organizing collectively.

Residents expressed concern over the “changing character” of the neighborhood and said the townhomes would add to traffic woes and overcrowding of schools.

The proposed development is located near the entrance of Woodrow Wilson Middle School and Woodbrook Elementary School. A little further, on the border of Metuchen is St Joseph High School. These areas witness heavy school traffic and other traffic during the day.
The developers are seeking preliminary and final site plan approval from the Zoning Board, along with use and bulk variances to build the homes in a property zoned for golf course. The Metuchen Golf and Country Club are adjacent to the proposed site.

Related:

Edison Warehouse Owner Willing To Sell Property As Open Space

Edison Will Apply For Grant To Purchase Warehouse Site

Edison Residents Oppose Plan For Former Charlie Brown's Site