PARSIPPANY — Despite heavy public opposition, the township planning board approved the development of a warehouse off of Parsippany Road on Monday night.
The three-hour meeting ended with a 5-2 vote that approved the final site plan of the Lanidex LLC warehouse development, at the site of a vacant office building. Mayor James Barberio was among the group that voted in favor of the proposal.
Public comment lasted over an hour, despite Chairman Tom Dinsmore's efforts to minimize the duration of a discussion that had already taken up several previous hearings. All 18 people who spoke during Monday's public comment session opposed the plan, citing concerns over truck traffic, air pollution and public safety. The warehouse at 20-30 Lanidex Plaza would be built next to the Lake Parsippany neighborhood and Eastlake Elementary School.
One resident, Kayleigh Mackintosh of Allentown Road, said there were better alternatives for the site, such as senior housing. She warned of the project's environmental impacts, including higher carbon emissions. Her 8-year-old son attends Eastlake and has lymphoma, she said.
"There is already a contaminated site, the EPA recognizes, right down on Parsippany Road. Is this the cause of his lymphoma? I don't know," she told the board. "But you can see how this will affect you with lawsuits when children start having health problems, when you can see what the fines from the EPA are going to be, and the emissions and what not. There are better solutions."
Parsippany rezoned for warehouse
Township officials voted last July to rezone the Lanidex West lots for warehousing , arguing they might otherwise be forced to accept a housing development at the site that would be more disruptive. Repurposing the vacant office property could generate as much as $100,000 per year in additional tax revenue, Barberio said last year.
The site is across Parsippany Road from the 626-unit PARQ housing development , which opened for its first occupants last month. That project is replacing seven demolished buildings that were once part of the original Lanidex office park.
"It will affect us. I wish it could go to other places, but we don't own it," Barberio said Monday of the old Lanidex lots. "These are private companies who own this land."
At the meeting, another resident, Nicole Franzese of Madison Road, asked if the board was afraid of being sued. "I would rather pay more taxes and stand up to the horrible developments that have taken over the community," she continued. The audience erupted into claps.
At a meeting earlier this month, Elliott Ruga, policy director at the New Jersey Highlands Coalition, said that the owner's application had been incomplete. That made any hearings before the application was completed on June 18 illegal, he argued.
On Monday, the warehouse applicant's attorney, John Inglesino, addressed Ruga's comment in his closing statement. He said the law requires organizations offering comment on a planning board proposal to be represented by an attorney, which Ruga is not. He said the warehouse proposal proceeded in tandem with the requirements of the Highlands Council, a state-appointed panel that oversees water quality in the area.
The attorney went on to read the law from the 2024 New Jersey Zoning and Land Use Administration rules, saying they confirmed the project's compliance with the law.
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The vote nonetheless left residents upset. An online petition opposing the warehouse said: "To those board members who stood with us, we commend you, you are the voice this town needs. For the rest of the board and the mayor, we call for a vote of no-confidence for the safety and welfare of our community.
"We must continue our fight to the next level: the state. Let’s appeal this decision and protect our community’s future," the petition said. Email: NFlanagan@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Parsippany OKs controversial warehouse but neighbors vow to 'continue our fight'
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