Planning Board Meeting: April 2, 2025
The Lambertville Planning Board met on April 2, 2025 at 7pm. The Fair Share plan that was on the agenda was taken off and moved to June 4th.
Most of the meeting was about 14 Lambert Lane. The owner of the property, Ryan Spreen of Clinton Street, wants to build at least two town homes on the site. Plans for the town homes were posted publicly on a Google drive.
Rich Mongelli, Spreen’s legal representative, introduced the project. This was not a site plan application, it was a minor subdivision.
Eric, the engineer, presented. He described the property in its current state, and explained that the applicant was requesting two variances, one for each unit to be set back from the street with driveways that exit onto Lambert Lane.
He said setting the structures back will allow them to keep the cherry trees, and also create off street parking for each unit.
“Other than that,” he said, “the plan complies with ordinance.”
The structure will be approximately 40 feet high. It is located in the flood plain, and on the D&R Canal. The homes must be elevated to comply with FEMA and NJDEP flood regulations, so the first floor will be nothing but garages.
Each town home will be a 3-bedroom unit with porous asphalt driveways. There is a room at the top of each home that by law may not be used, or advertised, as a bedroom.
Spreen is trying to acquire the adjacent lot. If a judge grants a title, and Spreen can obtain it, he will apply to build a third unit.
Rooftop rainwater will pour into the driveway’s porous asphalt, and the property plans include flood vents.
Michael Sullivan, the board’s planner, was concerned about the look of the flood vents. He wondered if there was a visual impact. Eric said the vents are made of stainless steel, and could be colored to match the building.
Public Concerns
Marie lives next door on Coryell Street. She said the access road is necessary for her to get to her garage, and for parking.
Spreen said quieting the title will solidify his and the neighbor’s access, and that he will build a small home on the neighboring lot if he can. Finkle’s had been using the property in question, and they thought it was theirs.
Spreen said he is going through the courts, and spending more money, to quiet the title (establish clear ownership).
Spreen also mentioned another property nearby, which has a small, canal-side sitting area. He said River’s Edge has been paying taxes on it, perhaps to take it over. He praised their initiative.
Betty Anne, also from Lambert Lane, asked if Spreen will build on the extra lot.
Spreen said no—he wants to hold that property for his family. Then he said yes, he would build there, because it is big enough to build on.
Board members guided the conversation back to the current application, and explained that the discussion had strayed beyond the 14 Lambert Lane project. Any future subdivision would have to come back to the board.
Nancy, a Lambert Lane resident, said the River’s Edge community is concerned about the mass of the project. She told a story about Peter Parker, who used to live there.
“Spider-Man?” Spreen joked, raising his eyebrows.
Nancy requested that the new construction be kept intact, and not impact the effectiveness of the storm drains that River’s Edge paid to have installed.
Eric, the engineer, said there won’t be any change to existing drains.
The Architecture
Chris Pickell, the architect, was sworn in and accepted as an expert. He described the floor plans and talked about the style of the space. There will be 8 and 10 foot ceilings on first and second floors. There will be an elevator and stairs inside each unit.
The top floor has a room, and a rooftop terrace. The elevator goes all the way up. The terrace overlooks the canal at the rear of the property.
Pickell said the property will flood in the future, which is why the house is stacked on top of garages. The mechanicals will go on top, instead of on the bottom, of the home.
“The owner should put the elevator up top when it floods,” he said.
“Every intention is to keep the two cherry trees,” Pickell added, and pointed out that setting the homes back makes them appear smaller.
Sullivan said he found it hard to find fault with the design except for the garage doors, which are double-wide and horizontal, instead of vertical. He suggested breaking up the fenestration of the facade to make it, “a heck of a lot more friendly” to Lambert Lane.
Pickell agreed, and said they could think about those things.
Nancy wanted to know the height of the building from street level. Pickell said it’s 39 feet tall, and that the garage floor is 3 feet, 4 inches above street level.
“So 43 feet above street level,” Nancy said.
Pickell said that is not how the ordinance works, and thinking about that way it has no meaning.
Judith, another Lambert Lane resident, pointed out that a similar building proposal on the same site was turned down in the past.
Pickell said he felt this project was consistent with the buildings in the area, and he mentioned that there is an ugly building on the corner of Lamber Lane.
Judith said the project is too big.
Pickell said New Jersey is being built up, that this is infill, and he reiterated how he felt the massing was consistent.
More Concerns
Don, who lives directly next door, showed a computer-rendered image of his small house with two tall town homes towering beside it.
“Ryan [Spreen] is a cool guy, and he’s done some cool things in town, but this is a bad decision,” Don said. He asked the board for their consideration.
Doug, also from Lambert Lane, said he appreciated the way the work was proposed, but that he couldn’t approve of the building, because it’s too big.
“I would support it if there weren’t so much massing,” he said, “but it doesn’t comply with the nearly identical proposal from 2019. It’s even larger.”
In 2019, the planning board determined that there was too much concentration in a similar design proposal on the same lot.
“We know projects are coming,” Doug said, “If we look past precedent in this hearing, it is dangerous for bigger developments.”
The Board asked if the architect and applicant had looked into alternatives.
“The reality is we all have to make a decision, because we are in the flood zone,” said Spreen, “I love Don’s house next door, but it can’t be built like that now.”
Spreen said he knows it looks big with the garages on the first floor, but he likes off street parking, so why not give new residents a garage.
“I wish I had a garage,” he said, “As much as I love my neighbors, they’ve got seven garages there.”
The Mayor said that Spreen raised good points, growth is inevitable, and this kind of higher profile is required. He thought the massing was fine, and that things are evolving here. He said it was resilience planning.
Sullivan said he hadn’t looked at the past board reports, but it was not his opinion that this project would require a variance.
“You can’t stop the flooding and maintain the character,” he said. “You’re seeing it in Asbury Park. They are building higher than the streets. The pushing up is an adaptation and evolution.”
The board asked Spreen if there were changes since 2019, when the board previously said the building was, “just too massive.”
Spreen mentioned that the developers who proposed the previous project were from outside of town.
“It looked like something K Hov would put up,” he quipped.
Some board members laughed.
“Too soon,” the Mayor admonished.
The Verdict
The planning board credited Spreen for meeting with the neighbors.
Paul Kuhl, the board chair, felt the project is too big.
“That’s my dilemma,” he said.
“We can agree to disagree,” said Spreen.
“We’re keeping the cherry trees as much as we can, which will make it look smaller,” he added.
One board member had an issue with the height.
“It’s four stories high,” she said.
Spreen said they need the height for the elevator.
“In terms of contemporary design standards this is utterly normal,” Pickell added.
Betty Anne, another Lambert Lane resident, said she was not opposed to Spreen building on his lot, but this one is just too big.
“This is massive... it’s four stories high. It’s not in keeping with the rest of the houses on the street.”
Kuhl again said the main question was the massing.
Spreen’s lawyer made a final plea. He pointed out that they met the bulk standard—except for being built to the lot edge. He said they were conforming in all respects, and that Spreen would address the garage doors as part of a compliance review.
“Us lawyers can’t say ‘you approved a huge place on Wilson street, now approve this one,’” He told the board, “The plan complies. The neighbors’ concerns are valid, but we have plans. It’s certainly not gonna hurt the neighborhood.”
“What does that do for the future of the town?” Doug asked. “This proposal doesn’t meet the guidelines and that has a future impact on the city.”
A board member said she thought it was good design, but it wasn’t keeping with the street scape.
“However, anymore, I don’t know if we can keep with the street scape,” she said.
She said she was leaning towards approving it.
“But you rejected it in 2019!” yelled a neighbor.
With that, the board voted to close public comments.
The Mayor said the design guidelines may be out of date with flooding, and he made a motion for approval with conditions.
The board listed the conditions:
- D&R approval
- environment commission approval
- architectural revision
- if the trees get damaged, they are replaced
- the finish of the walls must match the masonry
- storm water management must be provided if another lot gets created
- a typo must be corrected on the revised plans
- two variances are granted for the build-to lines
No sidewalks were required.
Several board members voted no, but the motion still passed.
Keep things interesting. Please make a donation today.