Hearing Tonight on ShopRite Designs

Inserra Supermarkets may learn this evening if the township's Design Review Board will endorse its latest architectural plans.

The advisory board will meet at 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall to hold a hearing on Inserra Supermarkets' latest sketches for a ShopRite at the site of the old A&P on Greenwood Avenue. Members of the public will be able to comment and ask questions.

The review is the latest step in an approval process that will eventually lead to hearings before the Planning Board. Inserra has proposed demolishing the existing supermarket building and strip mall in order to construct a 62,174-square-foot building. 

Hearings before the Planning Board, which would approve or deny the Inserra site plan, have been delayed to allow other relevant township boards a look at certain aspects of the Inserra proposal. The Shade Tree Commission has examined the landscaping proposed for the lot, while Design Review were charged with vetting the architectural specifications and aesthetics of the planned building.

Tonight, attorney James Jaworski and architect Thomas Ashbahian, a Wyckoff resident, will present revised plans submitted to the township in February in response to Design Review members' concerns, which were aired at a January meeting.

The revised plans were drafted to soften the proposed look of the ShopRite, which had been criticized as being out of character with the aesthetics of existing buildings downtown. Board members felt that the structure had a "big-box" feel and suggested breaking up the appearance of the building while making adjustments to the side and rear elevations, out of concern for motorists and passers-by. 

Ashbahian's renderings show a building with a brick front, two arches and a tower and at least four dormers on the roof. Green awnings cover additional windows that were not included in the initial designs. The revised drawings feature asphalt shingle on all the slope roofs around the building. Additionally, the Main Street elevation now features four gables designed to dress up what was essentially a brick face initially.

The Design Review Board is expected to make recommendations to the Planning Board, although their findings are not binding. Similarly, a Shade Tree report on proposed landscaping will be for Planning Board members' benefit as they begin hearings. 

Tonight's hearing will help to determine the start of the Planning Board proceedings, as the land use body has decided to wait to begin its review until all other reports are completed.