Planning Board Updates Public on Church of God Application, Sets Approval Conditions for Medical Office Building

Although it approved an application that had once been housing issues, the planning board on Tuesday added one stipulation to allow a medical office to be built on South Broad Street.

The board approved calling for a 5,000 square-foot, two-story medical office building at 200 South Broad Street on June 7, but Village Planner Blais Brancheau had some reservations on the construction of the north side of the wall, which had only 18 inches of space between the abutting property and essentially a plain brick facade.

Brancheau suggested during the council’s final approval on Tuesday night that a stipulation be added to ensure that if he and the applicant could not agree to a design element that was mutually acceptable, the applicant reappear before the planning board.

The village planner said the scenario that the two parties not be able to find common ground was unlikely, but noted the resolution without a motion was “open-ended” in terms of design possibilities, meaning the wall may not be up to Ridgewood snuff. Brancheau’s suggested motion carried.

In other planning board news, the board allocated 45 minutes of time to hear what virtually guarantees to be a contentious application on Godwin Avenue.

New planning board chairman Charles Nalbantian said the Church of God application– that the summer months wouldn’t allow for proper participation–would have 45 minutes of time allocated during the July 19 meeting.

The board still has not heard if attorney David L. Rutherford, representing the church, will agree to postpone the hearing until September, the desire of both the planning board and the neighbors.

Should the board not act by August 16, the application would be automatically granted approval.

Village Planner Blais Brancheau said because public comment is expected to be extensive, the hearing is expected to take several meetings.