Mahwah October 16, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • Page 3 Court denies Chai Lifeline’s stay appeal by Frank J. McMahon A two-judge panel of the Appellate Division of Superior Court has denied an appeal by the attorney for Chai Life- line, a Jewish not-for-profit organization, to grant a stay of the enforcement of the Mahwah zoning ordinance that was affirmed by Superior Court Judge Alexander Carver III on March 11. In that ruling, Judge Carver found that Chai Lifeline’s use of a residential dwelling on Ramapo Valley Road for short, multi-day periods of grief counseling for families with children who suffer from serious illnesses, groups of mothers whose children have passed away, groups of young widows, or those who share a common family crisis, vio- lates the township’s zoning ordinance. Carver found that Chai Lifeline’s use of the did not meet the definition of “family” and “single-family use” as stated in the township’s zoning ordinance, which permits groups of unrelated individuals to live together in a single-family zone if the residents bear the generic character of a rela- tively permanent functioning family unit. Carver also found that Chai Lifeline’s use of the prop- erty did not constitute a single-family use as contemplated by the Mahwah zoning code and master plan and that the use was more akin to a hotel or transient use, which is an impermissible use specifically distinguished in the lan- guage of the township’s ordinance. Carver’s ruling has been appealed in the Appellate Division of Superior Court, but following that ruling and Carver’s denial of Chai Lifeline’s request for a stay of the enforcement of his ruling, Gary Montroy, the township’s construction official, revoked Chai Lifeline’s certificate of occupancy on the basis that the use of the dwelling as con- ducted by Chai Lifeline does not comply with the state’s uniform code of construction. Township officials have advised that the house is not being occupied, but Chai Lifeline’s attorney, Justin San- tagata, says his client is continuing to use the house as a single-family house. Santagata wanted to stop the township from enforcing its ordinance based on Carver’s ruling until the matter is resolved in a higher court. When Carver refused to grant a stay of any action on his ruling, Santagata sought an emergency stay of his ruling from the Appellate Division. Appellate Court Judge Jonathan Harris denied that request, claiming there was insufficient reason to grant a stay based on immediate or irreparable harm. Santigata then filed a formal appeal for a stay with the Appellate Division. In that formal appeal, Santagata argued that Chai Lifeline would be irreparably harmed without a stay because that organization only has one purpose and it is to help families who have lost a child to terminal illness or are coping with children who have chronic or terminal illnesses and the house could not be used in any other way. Santagata claimed that allowing this client to continue to use the property while it is being litigated in the Appellate Division would do no harm to Mahwah, but stopping the use would cause great harm to the people his client allows to use the property. A two-judge panel of the Appellate Division reviewed the appeal for a stay and, on Sept. 30, Judges Marie E. Lihotz and Richard S. Hoffman denied the formal appeal without comment. The appeal of Carver’s original ruling remains in the Appellate Division although a resolution at that level could take many months because the attorneys for all parties involved in the dispute have until the end of this month to file briefs in the matter. Answers to those briefs must be filed by Nov. 12 before an Appellate Court panel of judges is assigned to review the legal matter. Once the matter is adjudicated at the Appellate Court level, it could also be brought to the state’s Supreme Court for a final decision. Chai Lifeline has been using the house since 2007 to permit members to stay there for short multi-day periods. The house is located on a 4.58-acre property on Ramapo Valley Road that is in the R-80 single-family residential zone. The property was donated to Chai Lifeline by its previous owner. In 2009, acting on complaints by several neighbors, the township’s former zoning officer found Chai Lifeline’s use of the property to be a violation of the town- ship’s zoning ordinance. The township’s zoning board of adjustment denied Chai Lifeline’s request to overturn the zoning officer’s interpre- tation of the ordinance and its use variance application.