Wyckoff March 28, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 3 Planning board approves new location for Aldo’s by John Koster The Wyckoff Planning Board has approved the relocation of Aldo’s, a popular restaurant, to the former Wyckoff Bakery building by unanimous vote of those members who did not recuse themselves. The decision will not be memorialized until May 9, as the April 11 meeting of the Wyckoff Planning Board has been cancelled. However, the board approved the concept presented by Aldo Cascio, owner of the restaurant, who says he will vacate the present location of Aldo’s at 393 Franklin Turnpike and of Pane e Vino at 397 Franklin Turnpike, and will combine his operations at 640 Wyckoff Avenue, the former site of the Wyckoff Bakery. The 5,296-foot-square building will be renovated to provide seats for 170 patrons with a wine bar, dining area, and cappuccino bar. A wine tasting area and outdoor dining will also be available at the new Aldo’s once it is completed. The planners who voted granted a variance to allow 19 parking spaces where 57 parking spaces would have been required based on the zoning code. Some neighbors objected to this. However, neither Pane e Vino nor the present Aldo’s have any designated parking at all. The issue of whether street parking has caused problems was controversial among residents. Objectors said there is already a parking problem for area merchants and that the expansion would exacerbate the situation. Other residents turned out to support Aldo’s, wearing T-shirts that said “I Love Aldo’s.” Mayor Christopher DePhillips and Township Committeeman Douglas Christie, both of whom serve on the planning board, recused themselves from the proceedings, as did Robert Kane and Dritta McNamara, because Aldo’s has sometimes hosted Republican League fundraisers and votes from these planners, who are members of the GOP, could have been construed as a conflict of interest. Cascio and his attorney, Bruce Whitaker, said the new Aldo’s would be a great improvement with a landscaped parking lot and enhanced dining facilities. Henry McNamara, a former state senator, owns the properties where Aldo’s and Pane e Vino are currently located. McNamara had objected to Casio’s plans, and McNamara’s attorney, John Dorsey, previously asserted that the application should have been heard by the board of adjustment, because township code permits only one use per building, while the restaurant and retails sales would constitute two uses. Whitaker contended that the liquor sales constitute an ancillary use to the wine bar and, as such, would not require a variance. The Wyckoff Township Committee has introduced an ordinance that would establish fees for the use of the Larkin House by groups not directly affiliated with township senior citizen and safety activities. If adopted, the ordinance would set a fee of $25 per event per day for groups that receive approval to use the Larkin House. Groups would be required to complete an application that would be reviewed by the township clerk. The ordinance states that the Wyckoff Senior Citizens’ Club, the Wyckoff Community Emergency Response Team, and any other groups named by the township committee will qualify for fee-free use of the Larkin House. Fees sought for Larkin House use Wyckoff Township Administrator Robert Shannon explained that the fees would cover the cost of heating, electricity, cleanup, and maintenance of the property without further burden on Wyckoff taxpayers for those events or groups that are not related to the needs of the entire citizenry. The late Dorothea Larkin bequeathed the Larkin House to the Township of Wyckoff in her will for the use of Wyckoff residents, and senior citizens in particular. The property on Godwin Avenue has been substantially renovated since the donation was made, and now includes a (continued on page 12)