The Evesham Town Council meeting on 10/1/2019 is one of the shortest I've been to. Not a lot happened, but there are a few items of interest. Neither Councilman Ken D'Andrea or Councilwoman Pat Hansen were in attendance.
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| Four speed activated LED light will flash upon approaching the curve |
- Flashing warning signs will be placed on Elmwood Road near Stefan Drive. There is a sharp curve at this intersection. According to Tom Kohl, Superintendent of Public Works, there have been numerous accidents at this location in the past several years. As soon as Public Works repairs the guard rail, it gets hit again. The new sign will light up as people approach the curve, warning them of the sharp curve.
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| North Elmwood Road facing north, at intersection of Stefan Drive. |
- The Township voted to accept the $275,000 grant from the NJ Transportation Trust fund to complete the sidewalk from Ross Way to Evesboro-Medford Road. This will allow the residents of Inglis Gardens to get from their homes all the way to 7-11 and the Shoppes at Village Greene on a sidewalk (Update: 10/3/2019 - Construction is expected to begin in Spring 2020.)
- Construction on the entrance to Plaza 70 at Produce Junction is expected to be completed by October 11. When completed, the entrance will align with the new Dunkin' entrance across the street. This work was paid for by the developer of Renaissance Square.
- For the past several years, the Township has employed a full-time Planner on its staff. That came to an end earlier this year when Planner Leah Furey-Bruder resigned her position to go into private practice. Rather than hire a new Planner, the Council has determined that the best course of action was to contract the work out. As such, three contracts were awarded last night
- Leah Furey Bruder was awarded a contract to continue her work on COAH/Affordable Housing in Evesham. Rather than a salaried position, it is a contracted position at $145 per hour
- The Planning Board held interviews last month with Planners and a contract was awarded to the Taylor Design Group. They have submitted an hourly fee schedule for their work in the upcoming year.
- The Zoning Board held interviews last month with Planners and a contract was awarded to Environmental Resolutions. They have also submitted an hourly fee schedule.
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| Fee schedule for Environmental Resolutions for 2019-2020 Fiscal Year |
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| Fee schedule for Taylor Design Group for 2019-2020 Fiscal Year |
And finally, during public comment, I asked a question about the ongoing construction at Renaissance Square. After attending a Town Council Meeting in August of 2017, I had updated my blog with the following:
"The “H” building will be the first residential building to be built. The developer cannot build another residential building until that one is 75% occupied. After that, they cannot build another until THAT building is 75% occupied."
I was surprised when a second building, directly behind the new Evesham Mortgage, began construction several months ago. I reviewed the official Town Council minutes from that August 22, 2017 meeting, which confirmed what I wrote. "Mayor Brown noted that as per redevelopment agreements, new
apartment complexes cannot be built until the previous is at 75%
capacity."
When I asked last night about that restriction, Nancy Jamanow, Director of Community Development, stated that there were updates to the development agreement after the Town Council meeting of 8/22/17. One of the updates removed the 75% restriction. The developer is now able to build all 5 residential buildings at their convenience. I don't recall the topic ever coming up during any subsequent public meeting.
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| Residential Buildings 1 and 2 currently under construction. 3,4 and 5 have not yet begun. |
UPDATE: The amended redevelopment agreement was passed with Resolution 339-2017 after public hearing at the 11/21/17 Town Council meeting. This removed the 75% requirement. Here is what I wrote at the time:
"Ms [Rosemary] Bernardi also asked about resolution 339-2017 regarding changes to the Renaissance contract. [Township Manager] Tom C noted that the changes were so instead of building one building at a time, all the foundations could be laid at once. Tom stated that it was obvious that a builder wasn't involved in the original contract, that a builder would have asked for this to be included at the beginning."I did not define the word 'foundation' at the time, though I don't think what is going up behind Evesham Mortgage could be considered a 'foundation'.
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