There is alot of commercial/residential construction underway around town. We’ll provide updates periodically. Scroll down to read about Developments such as Maize Restaurant, Westfield Crossing, Condition of Downtown, and Affordable Housing...
SITE STILL IN DEVELOPMENT - DRAFT
MAIZE RESTAURANT
North Side Train Station Historic Building
update 8/16/24
Please see video a bottom of section for what is considered best practice and see what Westfield is not doing in this public pedestrian and vehicular mass transit & retail space.
In early August sitework around the building began and the new yet incomplete sidewalk was available to the public causing a safety hazard and confusion, since the sidewalk only leads to the entrance of Maize Restaurant. After a conversation with the Restaurant owner, the sidewalk was closed off to the public, and we are pleased they engaged and implemented construction safety precautions for the commuters. We wish the town administration had been pro-active and we hope that the town will become more engaged with all the planned development in Westfield that will impact the public.
July 26, 2024 Update
In late June the construction barricade protecting the construction site was removed and the entire unfinished building construction was exposed to the public. The pedestrian safety was and continues to be lax and the area is unsafe. These photos are from the week of July 22nd. It took us highlighting these concerns since January to finally have caution tape installed and bike racks in certain areas. It is unbelievable to think that this Town administration believes this is an acceptable condition for residents and visitors to Westfield.
he area is filled with dumpsters and storage boxes and is not completely cordoned off from the public.
There is no signage telling commuters that one set of steps are completely closed off for access. Some bike storage facilities that are rented by residents are inaccessible.
There is debris laying around, exposed, as if this is a junkyard. Contractors should be required to have a daily cleanup.
There is no designated crosswalk for pedestrians to walk safely to the sidewalk area,, either adjacent to Rooster Spin or adjacent to the Christmas Tree. Pedestrians are walking around debriis and containers and cars actively using the roadway.
We, at several Town Council conference meetings have requested safety improvements and for the preparation of construction safety guidelines for builders so that these types of conditions do not continue to occur, especially with all the planned developments the town has approved.
The town approved by Ordinance last year, up to $230,000 for installation of utility infrastructure work—-some of that money could go towards proper safety measures.
Whether is DPW or Building Department, someone in this Administration needs to make pedestrian safety a priority, especially in a town with a mayor promoting ‘walkability’.
update 2/17/24
Questions on scope - will the asphalt walking surface adjacent to the building be replaced with a more durable pedestrian walking surface, ie. concrete, stamped concrete, granite pavers? or is the existing surface which is not in ‘good working order’ condition going to remain.
Are the roadway surfaces and other sidewalk surfaces that have been impacted during construction, with trenches, etc going to be replaced in kind or only patched? Is that scope included in the ‘up to $230,000 allocated via ordinance in December 2023? The town has not clearly articulated the scope of work included in this ordinance and it is unclear what the finished condition of this construction zone will be.
Future Location for Maize Restaurant at Northside Train Station - Currently Under Construction
It’s been a long time, about 2 years since we’ve seen this beautiful historic building elevation. It’s been behind an ugly green painted plywood wall and this public area is being allowed to deteriorate and has turned into an ad-hoc construction work zone.
And now, the entire drop-off/pick-up area and pedestrian area has been turned into an unchecked ad-hoc construction zone. There is large-scale equipment and material and dumpsters scattered around the public area. Pedestrians have to walk under the backhoe to use the sidewalk. ADA parking spaces have been taken for contractor vehicles. Necessary Retail Parking spaces have been eliminated to store contractor equipment and material.
Please watch the video to view what is considered best practice and see what Westfield is not doing in this public pedestrian and vehicular mass transit and retail space.
update 1/19/24
An article printed in Patch on 2/5/2024, states that the restaurant that was scheduled to open in Spring of 2022 now plans to open in Late Spring of 2024. The photo to the left depicts the condition of the interior under construction. It looks like the demolition has been completed and the rough shell still has alot of work to do in the next 4 months if the building is to open in Late Spring (June 19th?).
There is alot of utility construction work underway with a large excavator on site daily and deep trenches being excavated adjacent to the Christmas Tree. Although the protection of the area has improved in the last two weeks, the soil mounds adjacent to the christmas tree and other trees are very close if not under the drip lines and are a risk to tree health. There are also plastic pipes being stored under the christmas tree - it does not appear to be anyone from the town engineer’s office monitoring this work to ensure our town assets are protected properly.
https://patch.com/new-jersey/westfield/maize-cocktails-cocina-updated-westfield-opening
Developments and Affordable Housing
The town was required to satisfy the Prior and Third Round FSHC requirements with Fair Share Housing Corporation (FSHC) and reached an agreement in 2017. The town’s executed Settlement Agreements and Amendments (2021) with FSHC provided for the ability to provide up to 1,174 market rate apartment units in order to provide 314 affordable housing units (AFH). Of those, 800 market rate units and 260 affordable have been approved by the town as of February 2024. The Town Council and Planning Board has also approved additional market rate apartment units bringing the total market rate units to 1,526. Of those, 389 are affordable housing units.
You will hear the number 998 as the ‘unmet need’ of affordable housing units. Thru discussions with the FSHC, Overlay zones were identified and agreed to that enabled the town to provide for some of this unmet need to satisfy the third round—- 660 market rate housing units would include 100 affordable housing units. Of the 660, 286 market units have been approved with 46 units being affordable (those numbers are included in the total numbers above and the chart below). The chart below identifies every development with the total housing units including the AFH units, as well as some potential developments that have been identified in the Town of Westfield’s annual report to the FSHC. Those reports can be found on the town’s website. Those reports do not have comprehensive numbers, so the chart below attempts to provide that for the Westfield community.
A State Law S50/A4 has recently been enacted on 3/18/24, regarding the affordable housing requirements for the Fourth Round and beyond. Some of the developments approved after 2021 may count towards the Fourth Round, although the egregiously oversized developments like The Sophia and One Westfield Place may actually harm our ability to meet the new and not yet determined affordable housing requirements. Those two developments impact the charm and character of Westfield because the dwelling units per acre higher than other approved sites in town. The new law now stipulates that the NJ State Department of Community Affairs will establish the AFH count by October 20, 2024 and the town council would be required to accept the numbers by January 25, 2025.
Sophia= 60 units/acre and OWP = 125 units/acre (north and central apartment building) The Scattered Sites Redevelopment Plan includes 4 sites totaling 4 acres in the heart of the Central Business District. We should be concerned that these sites will be bulked up well beyond traditional zoning in the name of achieving affordable housing numbers. These 4 sites are municipal surface parking lots that serve the retail/restaurant businesses in the central business district - lot between Prospect and Elm, the lot bhind Barrons and The Gap, the lot behind the Rialto, and the lot across from the Post Office. We have been asking the town council and mayor for the last few months about the status of these sites, stated the need for land use and design guidelines, and all have fallen on deaf ears.
LEGAL HISTORICAL TIMELINE
April 4, 2017 Settlement Agreement Third Round
November 1, 2017 Court Order Filed
February 2018 Affordable Housing Report - Housing Element and Fair Share Plan
March 5, 2018 Planning Board Adopted Housing Element and Fair Share Plan
August 23, 2018 Final Judgment of Compliance 3rd Round Settlement w/Gap Period 1995-2015, expired July 2, 2025
June 9, 2021 Planning Board approved 2021 Settlement Amendment (increase from 15 to 25 units, transfer 6 Handler units to Williams)
June 15, 2021 Town Council approved Third Round Settlement Amendment including Williams Nursery
February 1, 2022 Final Judgment of Compliance for Settlement Amendment
Westfield Crossing
Before Version building mass, scale, and materials/ detailing more in keeping with Westfield character
Timeline and Process
Westfield Crossing grew out of discussions with the Town Planner in 2017 and was formalized in a settlement agreement with FSHC in 2017 amongst, Elite Development, Town of Westfield and FSHC.
In February 2018, the new Town Council (at the time) adopted this plan unanimously. On March 13, 2018 an overlay zone was adopted - SW-AHO for these three sites.
In February 2020, the Town Council designated these sites as ‘areas in need of redevelopment’ and from May 2020 thru January 2021, the Redevelopment Plan was drafted with the Plan being adopted by Ordinance by the Town Council February 23, 2021. Resident input during this process was minimal, if at all. During this process the northside buildings became 4-stories, a public courtyard was added to separate the buildings, the residential inner donut courtyards became smaller, surface parking was added behind the buildings, the triangular site became a landscaped plaza.
On May 25, 2021, the Town Council adopted the Redevelopment Agreement and on June 15, 2021 the Town Council adopted the PILOT agreement.
On September 8, 2021, the Planning Board approved the Site Plan application for Phase 1- northside buildings and plan. Variance granted for a wall-mounted building sign in addition to a free-standing sign.
On August x, 2023, the Planning Board approved a variance application for the Phase 2 southern building to add a 4th floor to the building and to provide surface level parking.
On April 1, 2024, the Planning Board approved a variance application for the Phase 1 northside buildings by the Apple Montessori Daycare Center to convert the public courtyard to a private playground.
Meeting Minutes from Planning Board
PB 21-10, 421-449 South Avenue East, Block 3307, Lots 1 & 2
Applicant sought site plan approval for construction of a mixed-use project consisting of 156 residential units with an inclusionary component and 17,000 square feet of commercial space. A variance was requested from the Land Use Ordinance Section 16.04 E.4 where a freestanding sign is permitted as an alternative to wall mounted signs and proposed are both a wall mounted sign and a freestanding sign. Mr. Trembulak explained revisions. Mr. Sammet suggested corrections to be made. It was noted that the new electric car charging requirements would be added to this resolution.
Ms. Habgood expressed concerns regarding building materials and architectural details. The Board members discussed the building materials would be consistent with the testimony. Ms. Harrison expressed her concern over the building materials. She proposed for them to be reviewed by the subcommittee. Mayor Brindle, Mr. Sammet and Mr. La Place discussed the materials.
Chairman Ash requested that the building materials be reviewed and approved by the site plan subcommittee. All agreed.
Chairman Ash called for a motion to adopt the Resolution as amended. Mr. Ceberio made a motion, seconded by Chief Tiller.
ALL IN FAVOR: OPPOSED: ABSTAINED: ABSENT:
Motion carried. Michael Ash, Mayor Brindle, Alexandra Carreras, Matthew Ceberio, Councilwoman Habgood, Anastasia Harrison, Ann Freedman, Ross Goldstein, Asima Jansveld, Michael La Place, Chief Tiller None None None