Speedwell Redevelopment Phase 1 Expected to be Approved

For all intents and purposes, it appears Phase I of the Speedwell Redevelopment Plan will be approved by the Planning Board.

The Board voted Thursday night, after another marathon session that ran past 10:30 p.m., to have Board Attorney John Inglesino draft a resolution to approve the plan, which would be voted on at the next Planning Board meeting, scheduled for April 26.

Only board member Michael Pooler voted against the call for a resolution to be drafted. When asked why he voted against it, Pooler said, pointing to Inglesino, "any comments, speak to the man over there."

The meeting, which was a continuation of the March 22 meeting, focused primarily on stormwater management, sidewalks and exterior design of the initial phase of the four-phase project, a 268-unit apartment building in the areas of Clinton Place, Prospect and Early streets.

However, much of the conversation at one point turned to traffic and the building's potential impact.

As part of an effort to mitigate potential traffic issues as a result of the project, project engineer Bill Deane said the developers would request that the state Department of Transportation modify the operation of the traffic signal at the corner of Early Street and Speedwell Avenue. Instead of the left lane from Early being utilized for left turns only and the right lane being for right and straight turns, the left turn lane would pick up any straight turns. This would allow, Deane said, for both the left and right lanes to be utilized at the same time.

Former Planning Board member Stefan Armington, who now sits on the board as a Town Council representative, said he did not think such a change would mean much improvement, citing other streets in that area including Flagler Street.

Principal Rich Murphy, of Mill Creek Residential Trust, noted traffic was not going to be solved as part of the initial phase, "but the council wanted Phase I to start," he said, noting the town's desire to get moving on a project that has been in the works in one way or another for about a decade.

Inglesino said broader traffic impacts are not actually known yet from the entirety of the project, but that they could be narrowed down following Phase I.

Phil Abramson, with the town's planning firm Jonathan Rose Companies, noted that request was a "high benefit, low cost option they could do right away," he said. "Why would we say no?"

"We're not giving up anything on later phases," said Planning Board Chairman Joseph Stanley. "We'll be revisiting this. We still get another bite at the apple."

There was a tense moment when Pooler, the former Board chair, asked again for clarification on the traffic issue.

"Somebody needs to explain it again, he doesn't understand it," Mayor Tim Dougherty said.

At this point, Murphy said he wasn't sure what the goals of the traffic study were. He said the Town Council, prior to , had wanted to focus more on pedestrian traffic and less on vehicle traffic. He cited previous designs that had called for a reallignment of Speedwell Avenue, and the council's disapproval of such an idea. "They want to create a sense of town place," Murphy said. "This issue needs to be worked out. What's the goal?"

Architect Dean Marchetto then spoke, noting some recommended changes to the exterior of the project cited at the last Planning Board meeting, including adjustment to window placements and color schemes for the brick facades. He said the street the building is facing would help to determine the design. "The pedestrian experience for the users on each side is designed to respond to the context its located in," he said.

Ken Miller, chair of the Morristown Historical Commission, noted some concern about there being too many colors on the exterior and what he considered an attempt by the designers for a "pseudo-historical" look. 

"Make no mistake, it's a modern building," Marchetto countered. "This is not a historical building. It's really building a neighborhood from scratch."

Still, Miller said a lot of progress had been made on the project since it first came before the town. "The project is important for the town; we want to see it move forward," he said.