Proposed Doctor's Office 'Uprooted' by Planning Board

It's a general rule of thumb that planning and zoning boards love applications that contain no variances – they're consistent with code and often comply with the municipality's understanding of "good planning." But for one Ridgewood gastroenterologist, a variance-free application was actually the wrong way to approach things, the planning board said Wednesday night.

Dr. Anna Korkus had to build a 5,000 square foot medical facility at 200 South Broad Street after becoming tangled in the web of affordable housing jumble. Then, she found out Wednesday night that her professional planners would be going back to square one in constructing the single-story medical office because of a series of issues with setbacks, stormwater drainage systems and a narrow driveway.

"I think this site has a lot of unique aspects that warrant the board considering variances that would make it a better development," said planning board chair David Nicholson.

David Beesely, the engineer hired by Korkis, told the board that the proposed single-level facility would sit on vacant lot slightly less than a half-acre. A basement would contain medical records and the plan would have Korkis and another doctor sharing the space.

Although setbacks, soil, stormwater were major focuses of the application, there was one aspect of the application that seemed to upset Mayor Keith Killion.

The building's construction would require a sidewalk to be placed down where a large, old oak tree is. Gilchrist said that tree would have to come down, saying he believed the usefulness of the tree "may have reached the end," adding that he'd rather not "have it it hanging over my building."

Killion barked back, "I just hope they don't think of human beings that way."

Rutishauser and the Arborist expert in town were instructed to examine the tree to find its "usefulness."

Said attorney Collins, "We'd prefer not to cut it down," conceding that they had not drafted up any other options. 

The driveway would be 20-feet in width but would not accommodate for a standard-sized garbage truck, one of the major issues with the application.

Killion, all too familiar with that section of South Broad Street, said the village does not want trucks making K-Turns into South Broad, which regular-sized trucks would be forced to do should the width remain the same. While the applicant's professionals testified that they'd have to have a smaller truck, other members of the planning board expressed concern that the building could be sold or the doctor could have trouble finding the same sanitation collector.

Twenty-six parking spaces (three handicapped) are included in the initial application, but members of the planning board also expressed concern that snow removal would be troublesome.

So here's where it gets interesting (well, for planners anyway): Ridgewood's ordinance for setbacks in that zone designates either a start of construction at the property line or twelve feet back. This application contained that zero foot setback on the north wall, but could not accommodate for windows or really way to break up a mass of siding for architectural purposes. If the building were pushed back three feet, architect John Gilchrist said, something could be put up.

Oh, but there was more. Village Engineer Chris Rutishauser had an issue with the stormwater management system, which was as described by Beesley as an underground detention system that dumps into the municipal sewer system "at a controlled rate." It would also reduce current drainage, an obvious plus. But runoffs can't be managed on-site, Beesely said, because seepage pits would be required. That will be addressed in the next submission, applicant attorney Charles Collins said.

Rutishauser also noted that the excavation of soil is close to the limit needed for a separate permit. Beesely said 1,855 cubic yards of soil would have to be scurried to another site, but could not answer if fill brought to the site would push the aggregate number over 2,000 cubic yards, the village's cutoff number for a permit to be required.

Ultimately, while planning board members said they'd like to see many revisions, the applicants indicated they were more than happy with that.

"We didn't want variances but we are more than willing to [do so] for optimal development of the property, so long as variances could be considered for a balance,'" said Collins.