Wendy’s free to build on Ryders Lane site

Wendy’s free to build
on Ryders Lane site
BY TARA PETERSEN
Staff Writer

MILLTOWN — Wendy’s can now add a court victory to the list of obstacles they have overcome in their quest to build a restaurant on Ryders Lane.

State Superior Court Judge Edward J. Ryan ruled on March 1 that the Zoning Board of Adjustment acted appropriately when it approved a use variance allowing a Wendy’s restaurant to be built on the site of the Ryders Lane Farmers Market, near Blueberry Drive.

"The application of Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers was properly considered ...," Ryan said in his decision. "The grant of the application was not arbitrary, capricious or unreasonable and will not be upset by the court."

Wendy’s first sought approval for the restaurant in 2002, but had to withdraw its application to the Planning Board when the Borough Council changed a zoning ordinance to specifically prohibit fast-food restaurants on lots that are partially zoned as residential. The lot in question is located mostly in a commercial zone, but its rear section is zoned as residential.

The application was then brought before the Zoning Board of Adjustment, which in April 2003 granted a use variance in a 5-2 vote. During the course of the Zoning Board hearings, Wendy’s reduced the size of the proposed restaurant from 3,140 to 2,400 square feet.

Plaintiff John Morris, a borough resident, cited several reasons why Wendy’s should not have been granted the variance. He argued in part that the application failed to satisfy the borough’s noise level standards; that it failed to meet a requirement related to the application’s characterization as a minor subdivision; and that there was also a problem with the subdivision of the lot.

The judge, however, said the court would only interfere if the plaintiff could show that the local zoning determination was "arbitrary, capricious or unreasonable."

Henry Kent-Smith, the attorney representing Wendy’s, had said his client worked for months with borough engineers and residents to negotiate a site plan.

The negotiations resulted in a scaled-down version of the original plan, from 72 seats to 60 seats. The revised plan also leaves the entire strip of property in the residential zone as open space. It also increased plantings to create a larger buffer.

Joe Broxmeyer, the former farm market owner, planned to retire upon the sale of his family’s 50-year-old business on the property.

Several residents objected to the restaurant, saying it will bring unwanted odors and possible rodents, spillover lighting, more traffic and an increased safety hazard.

The Borough Council has since discussed enacting an ordinance banning certain fast-food establishments in part or all of the borough, but it has not acted, for fear of hurting existing businesses that may fall into the fast-food category.