Author: Jerry Barca
Publication: Courier News
Date: March 11, 2004
URL: http://www.c-n.com/news/c-n/story/0,2111,923126,00.html
The Township Council has sided with
residents who fear a proposed Hindu temple in neighboring South Plainfield
would disrupt their quiet neighborhood.
On Wednesday night, council members
cited traffic concerns, not religious denomination, in adopting a resolution
in opposition to the proposed one- story, 14,000-square-foot temple on
the former Coastal Oil site.
"This particular development can
negatively impact, quite seriously, a neighborhood in Edison," said Councilman
Anthony Massaro.
The International Swaminarayan Satsang
Organization is seeking to build the temple on an area zoned for light
industrial use. While the entire building would sit in South Plainfield,
the lone access to the 6.7-acre plot is through Edison, namely Fleet Avenue.
Members of the congregation would have to traverse Universal Avenue or
Nevsky Street to reach the closest major thoroughfare, Park Avenue.
Tonight, the public will have a
chance to speak about the application at an 8 p.m. zoning board meeting
in South Plainfield Borough Hall.
Rick Brown, Edison township engineer,
is slated to voice the governing body's concerns at the meeting.
Irene Wall, a Fleet Avenue resident,
has led her neighborhood's fight to stop the proposed temple from being
built.
"Our area is not conducive to this
kind of development," said Wall, who lobbied the Edison council for support
earlier this week.
Edison residents next to the proposed
site fear cars traveling to and from the temple will disrupt their quiet
neighborhood of a half-dozen dead-end streets with Fleet Avenue as the
only outlet.
South Plainfield police have questioned
whether Nevsky Street and Fleet and Universal avenues could handle the
increased number of motorists the temple would yield, according to a Jan.
28 letter Sgt. Kevin Murtagh, of the traffic safety unit, sent to the zoning
board.
But a traffic study performed on
behalf of the developer by Medina Consultants of Princeton stated the increased
traffic from the temple would not negatively affect Edison or South Plainfield.
"A place of worship, as I've stated
before, is probably the best use for the site compared to what it is zoned
for," said Dhruval Shah, director of the Swaminarayan Satsang's Central
New Jersey chapter.
The area is zoned for light industrial
use, requiring a variance for the temple to be built.
The Hindu group currently holds
services in the Knights of Columbus building in the Iselin section of Woodbridge.
The congregation of 150 people is expected to reach 250. The congregation
wants to build the temple so it can have its own place to worship.
Shah believes zoning law allows
the temple to be built. If his group is denied by the zoning board, Shah
said an appeal will be filed.
