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Million-dollar view is at risk
(by Nikki Adelman/Correspondent - August 20, 2008)
One of Montville Township’s finest havens is Lake Valhalla and its glorious views and surroundings. It is a place unlike any other in Montville; wildlife is abundant, with deer, bears, foxes, raccoons, and wild turkeys roaming freely about. Residents of this area pride themselves on the lake’s preciousness and yearn to retain and preserve its beauty.
They enjoy nothing better than sitting at the lake and looking out at a view where no homes are visible through the trees.
As resident Dick Vreeland says, “It’s a million-dollar view.”
Yet all this beauty and peacefulness is in danger. After an arduous two-year long hearing process, the Board of Adjustment voted to approve an application requesting six variances to build on the lot at 21 Rockledge Road, stunning an audience of residents in attendance to protest the plan. Citing concerns about a lawsuit on the part of the applicant, the Board approved the unprecedented construction.
Several committees and residents of Montville Township are organizing to preserve their neighborhood’s character and would like to make it known that they are firmly opposed to new, unnecessary development.
Kathy Fisher, head of the Historical Society, said that "Over 400 township residents have signed a petition calling upon the township to uphold the protections in the existing codes to prevent one home from unnecessarily altering the terrain and towering over neighboring homes in such a detrimental way, which would impact other homes. Further the petition asks the township to amend and clarify zoning codes to ensure that the character of the neighborhood is protected as intended. Further, they are seeking other forms of protection to the neighborhood.”
These adaptations would protect the neighborhood from becoming ripe for demolitions in which the old houses are replaced with new and much larger homes, which would encroach upon the lake, neighbors, and the pristine environment. Architect Jack Murphy calls this the “Bergen County syndrome,” in which the infiltration of newly constructed houses overpower the old neighborhood.
As for this particular house, the neighborhood is resolutely opposed to its construction due to its encroachment on the existing homes and its impact on the breathtaking view of the lake and neighborhood. All of the previous homes on Rockledge Road were designed with consideration of the difficult terrain with the front doors below the driveway level. This proposed building would be 3.5 stories tall and would require almost all of the trees to be cut down.
Of the existing 21 houses currently on Rockledge Road, no others exceed two stories. This applicant, however, is requesting special consideration at the expense of existing residences. The proposed house would protrude well above the mature forestation. The disproportionately large home is unsuitable to the existing sloping terrain and requires massive terrain reshaping.
Due to the reshaping of the terrain and the use of terracing, 143 trucks of fill would be required. If the 143 trucks of dirt were lined up nose to nose, they would greatly exceed the height of the Empire State Building, a building 1,250 feet tall. Noise and traffic of 143 trucks would invade the quiet community. Furthermore, there are geotechnical questions as to whether the hill could even hold the dirt, or if the fill would slide downhill into neighboring houses.
Eileen McNally, owner of the house on the adjacent property, said of the Board of Adjustment’s decision, "It's a huge disappointment not only for my family and neighbors, but for the community at large. We had the support of the Valhalla Civic Association, the Lake Valhalla Club, and the 400 people who signed a petition seeking to close the zoning loophole that enables this type of overscaled construction. I thought landowners could develop, but not at the expense of their neighbors' property, investment and rights. The board voted that indeed, they can. I want to make crystal clear that I welcome a home on this lot. I just don't want to be buried by one."
Further explaining the objector's perspective, McNally continued: "It's clear to the most casual observer that the height of the proposed construction is grossly out of scale with the existing homes in the neighborhood. This house will be 30 feet higher than my own. Its foundation will be on a level with my roof. The applicant, though, was able to use a loophole in the zoning code to circumvent height restrictions. The code allows two and a half stories, or a maximum of 32 feet, but says nothing about artificially building up the land underneath the house. Simply put, they design a three-and-a-half story house — and there are no others on that side of Rockledge. Then they place it on top of another two stories of artificially created earth platform. How on earth can they get away with it?
“One board member put the key question to both the township engineer and the township planner: 'Can you think of any reason, other than skirting the height requirements, that the applicant would build up the earth against the rear lower story of the proposed house?' Both planner and engineer admitted they could think of no other reason, [yet] incredibly, it still passed."
The applicant had received approval for two previous homes to be built on this lot, but chose to go bigger and taller. The variances required include a difference in lot size of 18,564 square feet vs. 27,000 square feet, a 31 percent change; front setback 25.2 feet vs. 50 feet (a 50 percent difference); wall/fence height 9 feet vs. 6 feet (a 50 percent difference); design exception driveway slopes exceed 10 percent; development within steep slopes; and slope regulation in an environmentally sensitive area.
While the lot is sub-standard, a house could be built upon it that would not impact the existing neighborhood as much as the proposed house would. Neighbors recognize that a better design for the home could be used and that a new home could be constructed on the same lot without substantial damage to the existing character of the neighborhood and without excessive quantities of fill required for the construction of the proposed pyramid of dirt.
Residents in the Lake Valhalla community are asking for the township’s help in eliminating unnecessary risks, mitigating environmental damages and preserving the character of Rockledge Road and the entire Valhalla Lake community.
Mayor Deborah Nielson promises to “take the concerns of the neighborhood into account.” There are many more practical solutions to this problem. The township does not want the construction of this proposed home along Rockledge Road to completely devastate the existing character of its beloved neighborhood.
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