Page 4 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • December 11, 2013 Franklin Lakes Comprehensive golf course ordinance up for adoption by Frank J. McMahon The proposed ordinance that would establish a new zone for the development of the High Mountain Golf Club on High Mountain Road in Franklin Lakes will be consid- ered for final adoption at the Dec. 17 borough council ses- sion. The ordinance, a 15-page comprehensive document that covers all aspects of the proposed development, has been reviewed by the planning board at two meetings. The first section of the ordinance identifies the zone as PRD-2 planned residence district 2 and states that the pur- pose of the ordinance is to provide standards to support the borough’s growing demand for a variety of housing types in a manner that is sensitive to the environmental features in the district. According to the ordinance, devel- opment in this district is intended to assist the borough to meet its affordable housing obligation and to implement the affordable housing/COAH mediation agreement for lands within the district. This ordinance, if adopted, would be pursuant to the affordable housing/COAH mediation agreement executed by and among the Galenkamp Brothers Partnership, The Mountain Club, Inc., Toll Bros, Inc., the Borough of Frank- lin Lakes, and the Franklin Lakes Planning Board, collec- tively known as “the parties,” with regard to the zoning of the lands commonly known as the High Mountain Golf Club. With regard to any application or development of the property, the parties intend to include the terms and con- ditions of the affordable housing/COAH mediation agree- ment, which would be applicable to any such application or development. Principal permitted uses allowed in the PRD-2 zone would include detached single-family dwellings, town- house dwelling units, multi-family affordable dwelling units, and municipal buildings and uses. The single-family homes would have to vary in at least three of the following manners from each neighbor- ing home: the number of windows and/or the location of windows and doors visible from a front street elevation; the roofline design; the roof pitch variation; the facade brick or stone treatment on the front elevation; the land- ings, porches, bay windows, porticos, or other prominent ornamentation on the street facade; and the color of the street facade. The term “neighboring home” must include the single- family home to the immediate left or the right of the sub- ject home facing the same side of the street upon which the subject home would front, and the two closest single- family homes that are across and facing the street upon which the subject home would front. The ordinance describes the accessory uses permitted and sets the maximum number of units at 220, while the maximum number of townhomes cannot exceed 160 and the affordable housing units must meet the set aside speci- fied in the borough code. The document also defines the lot areas and widths for the single-family dwellings; the maximum building height of 2.5 stories or 40 feet for the detached single- family dwellings and the townhomes, but the maximum building height of three stories or 45 feet for the multi- family affordable dwellings; the building coverage and lot coverage; the building setbacks for the townhomes and distances between the buildings; and many other details of the various types of buildings. The ordinance also sets the rules for signs on the prop- erty. A homeowners’ association must be established for the purposes of owning and maintaining the common facilities. The development will not be required to provide public parking or public access to the waterfront, and the devel- oper must pay a fee in the amount of $150,000 for any obligation to provide additional open space and recre- ational amenities other than as explicitly set forth in this ordinance. Borough website wins NJLM award The Borough of Franklin Lakes has won the New Jersey League of Municipalities award for the “Best Website/Social Media” in the League’s Municipal Public Information Contest. Representatives from the borough received the award at a luncheon held during last month’s New Jersey League of Municipalities Conference in Atlantic City. The purpose of the annual contest is stated in league publications as providing “initiatives to increase the public’s awareness of government operations, strengthen community ties, and provide useful information and ser- vices to citizens who deserve to be highlighted. The pur- pose of this contest is to promote the use of successful and innovative techniques that increase government’s ability to meet citizen needs and improve access to government services.” The league, in conferring this award, specifically rec- ognized the borough “E-Blast” e-newsletter system and how it effectively communicates with borough residents. The E-Blast, and all elements of the borough’s com- munications programs, including the website, Facebook page, communication via Twitter, Swift911, cable chan- nels, calendar, resident handbook, and recycling pamphlet, are administered “in-house” by the borough’s “webteam.” The team consists of Borough Administrator Gregory Hart and Tax Assessor Secretary/Assistant to the Borough Administrator Lynette Sidoti, assisted by interns through a successful communications internship program. Residents who register for the E-Blast receive the e- newsletter at least once a week and are kept current on all borough news and information, and they are kept up-to- date during emergencies. Hart said over 2,400 people are now registered for the borough’s E-Blast. (continued on page 27)