The Lakewood Township Committee is scheduled to vote at their Thursday meeting on an ordinance which would legalize catering facilities and banquet halls for all schools, according to the publicly available agenda.
According to the text of ordinance 2022-046, “where schools are permitted uses, catering facilities and banquet halls shall be allowed as accessory uses in the schools buildings.”
Under current law, the township is silent when it comes to most schools regarding them having a catering or banquet hall on its premises, as opposed to Shuls and hotels, which are allowed to have them.
Although many schools in town do indeed have a banquet hall in their building, that is usually because they were later allowed as an “accessory use for the school,” a complex term which can be legally difficult to define precisely.
According to this new proposed ordinance, which will undergo its first reading at tonight’s meeting, if the area used for the banquet hall is under 800 square feet, then no new parking spaces will need to be added.
But if the area used is between 800 and 1,999 square feet, only 0.75 parking spaces will be required for every 100 square feet of space being utilized for the hall.
And if the hall is 2,000 square feet or greater, then 1 parking space for every 100 square feet will be required.
It is not clear exactly how the 0.75/1 parking spot ratio has been determined.
It is also not clear if schools will even be required to provide additional parking spot on top of what they already have.
A careful reading of the proposed ordinance seems to indicate that a school’s existing spots would work towards the total number of spots needed for the banquet hall.
If they are short, then new parking spaces would be required to be provided.
It should be noted that these new parking requirements, if adopted, will only be for future halls.
If the Township Committee approves the ordinance, it will then advance to the Planning Board for a full review and will recommend any changes if necessary before sending it back to the township committee.
UPDATE: The Township Committee passed the first reading.
According to this crazy proposal a simcha hall the size of Lake Terrace at 12,000 square feet would only require 96 parking spaces and a hall of 4,000 square feet would need only 40 spots! This script is reading like a nightmare! It’s beyond insane…
Why isn’t the committee drafting a rule with a normal parking ratio of 1:1 like they did last year for the banquet halls in the Cedarbridge zone?
If anything, simcha halls in residential areas would be even more devastating to the tens of thousands of residents, than a few businesses in the Cedarbridge campus.
Totally agree. And what about the noise? I hope Lakewood has a noise ordinance.
I guess lakewood traffic can get worse with such amazing ordinances. We cant imagine how much hate and ant semitism we have created by building recklessly without considering how it will impact our streets.
So ridiculous! A Yeshiva/school can have a building in any residential area and now they can open a hall there as well. Basically they are turning the entire Lakewood into a commercial zone. Whats next can Yeshivas have bussing stations with accessory Gas stations/convenience stores in a residential area? When and where does it stop?
What do you mean abt the noise?
Quiet simchas??
How do we rise up against these political hacks and bullies? When they make vorts in certain halls, the residential neighborhoods in which they are located look more like downtown Manhattan.
Make sure this story stays on the top as it will effect many people.
its about time Lakewood votes in a committee what cares about protecting its residents, for them to even consider voting a ratio one car for every 100 square footage shows how in touch they are with our community.
Just when you think Lakewood can’t get even more messed up (moderated)
Lakewood is the new Boro Park Williamsburg. Just when u thought it couldn’t get worse
As long as we Lakewood citizens keep voting in the same people who allowed all this misery to develop, we will get ignored and abused over and over again. We have to think for ourselves, do research for ourselves and stop following those who tell us whom to vote for. ITS TIME TO THROW THE (moderated) OUT!!
@Bringing Awareness, keeping this story on top will not change anything. All the power is invested in these people and they just laugh at the “little people” that are affected by these decisions.
With new election coming up in less than a months. Is there a race for local positions? are there any names of people that would oppose these?
Vote Democrat!! All the others are incumbents.
No surprise it’s the schools what are the primary vehicle for these political hacks electioneering they don’t pay for ads in newspapers rather your children come home with notes reminding you to please vote. One hand washes the other.
What sickens me is at election time they ask for “hakoras hatov” they spit in your face and then they try to convince you that is drizzling.