Politics & Government

Eatontown Company to Move to Former Truck Depot Location

Construction should begin in the fall

A company currently based in Eatontown got permission from the zoning board on Monday to build a new headquarters at the site of a former trucking terminal on Megill Rd. near the Farmingdale and Wall borders.

The application, brought by met with very little resistance from the board as they discussed ways to use a building that has been empty for several years. One of the biggest questions raised was what would be done with the garbage dumpsters that were proposed to be put close to the property line of a neighboring residence.

There were some questions raised during the meeting about whether the residence had been built before the truck company had closed and if that would have any impact on the application.

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Kevin White, one of the owners of the company said the plan was to use part of the existing structure while adding on to accommodate his business. White said his company builds mostly commercial electric signs for things like gas stations and other highway signs. 

As it is currently designed there are approximately 24 bays for trucks that were using the building under its previous owners. That would be drastically changed under the plans with one bay for a tractor-trailer and the rest of his company's vehicles being parked inside the building. 

Find out what's happening in Howellwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

White said at their currently location they use approximately 19,000 square feet of leased space. The Howell location, he said would provide them more office space and also gives them the opportunity to own their building.

The current plans for the new building would give the company close to 27,000 square feet of space including 1200 square feet for office space and an additional 1200 square feet for what White described as graphic design space. The rest of the space would be for the warehouse and fabrication the company does on site. 

In addition to keeping all the vehicles inside the building White said all their storage would be in the building with no plans for external storage units which was a question raised by the board. 

Based on approval by the board White said he hoped to start construction in the fall and move into their new location sometime during the Spring of 2013.

After close to an hour of discussion among members of the board and the applicant board attorney Ronald Troppoli outlined the changes that had been agreed to by both parties. That included more frequent collection of the garbage than the company had in the past and also moving the dumpsters to the western part of the building, away from the neighboring residence.

The normal hours of operation will be approximately 8:30 to 4:30 but with no showroom customer traffic is expected to be minimal. White's company will also submit a plan for a sign to the planner and engineer for its approval. 

Making the motion to approve the application was a familiar face to the board as John Armata returned to the dais following the resignations of two members last week. "In my mind this is a much better use than previously was there," he said. "It negates the fact that another trucking company could come in there and have 18 wheelers going up and down the road which nobody really appreciates."

Calling the new occupant a "low key addition," Armata said he was in favor of the application. 

The lone vote against the application came from board Vice Chairman Valeri Morone who said some of her questions were not answered to her satisfaction. "I was wondering how a 7300 square foot building is particularly suitable for someone who is already in a 19000 square foot facility and needs to make it even larger," she said. "I was thinking that the size of the building is increasing tremendously while the reduction of impervious surface is very small."

Weighing those two pieces of information she said, "The improvement doesn't outweigh the detriment." 

Chairman Stephen Meier said Morone gave him "quite a bit to think about," but ultimately voted in favor of the application as it already had enough votes to pass the board. 


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