Another Route 22 office building in Bridgewater targeted for demolition. What's proposed?
BRIDGEWATER – The golden era of the suburban office building is fading as another Route 22 landowner is proposing to tear down its down to build a self-storage facility.
Vytautas Paulius and 713 Company are scheduled to appear before the township Zoning Board of Adjustment next week with a plan to demolish the two-story office building at 1661 Route 22 and build in its place a 129,827-square-foot self-storage facility.
The triangular 3.43-acre lot is on the north side of Route 22 west of Vosseller Avenue next to the CareOne at Somerset Valley nursing facility.
The property, which backs to Donohue Road, is assessed at $2.73 million.
The proposal requires a use variance from the Zoning Board because self-storage facilities are not a permitted use in the zone.
Other variances are required, including floor area ratio, impervious coverage (54% when 30.6% is the maximum allowed by ordinance), building height. rear yard setback and a conservation agreement.
The meeting is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. Nov. 14 and can be seen on the township's YouTube channel.
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The application is the latest proposal to demolish office buildings built before the turn of the century and construct warehouses.
An application to tear down four office buildings on eastbound Route 22 and replace them with two warehouses east of Gaston Avenue is scheduled to be heard by the board on Jan. 12, 2024.
The owners of five lots on eastbound Route 22 are suing Bridgewater, claiming that the adoption of an ordinance restricting the construction of warehouses was "arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable."
1200 Route 22 Land Investors and 1200 Route 22 Land Holdings, which share a common address in Teaneck, are challenging the ordinance adopted by the Township Council on Oct. 17, 2022, arguing it is "irrational" and "a drastic reversal of the township's land use policy without any reasonable planning process."
There are also proposals in Bernards, Franklin and Warren to replace office buildings with warehouses.
In Readington, a Route 22 office complex has been replaced by apartments.
Email: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com
Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Bridgewater NJ Route 22 office building may become self-storage units
