October 16, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 5 Franklin Lakes Planning board to act on Shawnee Drive dispute by Frank J. McMahon The Franklin Lakes Planning Board has issued an ulti- matum to a Hackensack resident who owns a residential lot on Shawnee Drive on which a large house has been constructed. The property has been at the center of a dis- pute between the borough’s planning board and the lot owner for several years. At a recent public meeting, the planning board autho- rized Robert Davies, the acting attorney for the board, to send a certified letter to Joseph Ferriero, the attorney for Bashar Sabbagh who owns the residential lot, advising him and his client that the public hearing about a vari- ance for lot coverage will be held on Nov. 6 and no further adjournments of the public meeting will be granted. In the letter, Davies was instructed to advise Ferriero and Sabbagh that the board expects to take action on the matter at that meeting. The planning board had approved an application by Sabbagh for the construction of a conforming dwelling and other improvements in January 2006. A large dwell- ing, currently assessed at almost $1.1 million, has been constructed on the site along with a large paver block driveway. The dispute between the board and Sabbagh centers on the calculation of “total” impervious coverage on the site. Borough engineers have calculated the impervious coverage of the property at 33.85 percent, which violates the maximum allowable total lot coverage of 25 percent. During several recent planning board meetings, the permeability of a paver block driveway at the site has been the subject of extensive testimony by a civil engineer hired by Sabbagh. The conformity of the construction on that lot continues to be the subject of a public hearing before the board. However, Sabbagh has asked for several adjournments of the public hearings over the past couple of years, and the board has expressed frustration with the delays. Ferriero claims the change to the zoning ordinance that was made by the borough in 2010 when the wording in that ordinance was changed from “impervious” coverage to “total” coverage is contrary to case law. He says his client’s lot coverage should be calculated according to the language in the prior ordinance. Nasr Sheta, a civil engineer hired by Sabbagh, has provided extensive testimony concerning the size, nature, and permeability of the paver block driveway that has been installed on the lot and the amount of rainwater that runs off the driveway into the street and onto a neighbor- ing property. Sheta has been questioned extensively by Kevin Boswell, vice president of Boswell McClave Engineer- ing, the borough’s professional engineering firm, about the nature of the paver blocks and their permeability, and Boswell was scheduled to provide the board with reports on the type of paver blocks that were used for the drive- way and the runoff from that driveway into the curb line at the last meeting. That meeting was postponed at the request of Sabbagh. Since Sabbagh’s site plan was approved in 2006, he has revised his plans several times, and a revised plan was found to be fully conforming with the borough’s zoning code in April 2010. An amended soil moving permit was issued at that time. In November 2011, a stop work order was issued to Sabbagh when it was found the improve- ments constructed on the site were not in conformance with the approved plan. The following July, Sabbagh submitted conforming corrective measures, which included a further reduction of the size of the driveway and the removal of a pool from the plans. The stop work order was lifted and an amended soil moving permit was issued in July 2011. During an inspection of the site in May 2012, however, it was noticed that the driveway was not being constructed according to the most recent revised plan. Sabbagh was directed to restore the driveway according to the approved plan, or submit a variance application to the planning board seeking approval to allow the driveway to remain. Work on the property was stopped again in July 2012 because Sabbagh had not addressed the need to restore the site to conform to the approved plan and he had not submitted a variance application. Sabbagh then submitted a new plan that resulted in the 33.85 percent lot coverage calculation. Extravaganza reservations accepted The Franklin Lakes Branch of the Valley Hospital Auxiliary will hold its sixth annual Pre-Holiday Brunch and Boutique Shopping Extravaganza on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at the Indian Trail Club, 830 Franklin Lake Road in Franklin Lakes. Shopping will be from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.; brunch will be available from 10:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. Over 30 vendors will sell handmade and costume jewelry, unique children’s items, scarves, shawls, sweat- ers, belts, handbags, skincare products, home goods, and more. Special auction prizes will include a six-room hand- crafted Colonial mansion dollhouse valued at over $950, and a specially-designed piece of jewelry. Proceeds from this event will support the auxiliary’s $1.5 million pledge for expansion of The Valley Hospital Breast Surgery Program at the Luckow Pavilion, including a dedicated mammography suite and ultrasound suite, and for Valley Home Care’s Butterflies Program, a palliative care and hospice program for children. Tickets, which include brunch and shopping, can be pur- chased by sending a $35 check payable to The Valley Hos- pital Auxiliary: to Linda Leeder, 287 Glen Place, Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417. The reservation deadline is Nov. 4. The three-fold mission of the Valley Hospital Auxil- iary is to serve as community liaison to the hospital, raise funds, and assist the hospital through a variety of tradi- tional and non-traditional volunteer services.