Breza Rd. tract zoning under review in U.F. BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer UPPER FREEHOLD - Township officials discussed the future of the Commerce Park overlay on a Breza Road site at the Feb. 8 Planning Board meeting. The New York City-based Rockefeller Group withdrew an application to build 1.8 million square feet of warehouse space on the property late last year after a great deal of community opposition. On Feb. 7, the Upper Freehold Regional School District Board of Education voted to go to a $13.2 million referendum on April 17 to move the proposed Ellisdale Road middle school to 118 acres of the Breza Road tract. Township Planner Mark Remsa said the township could remove the original overlay and replace it with a new overlay, which would permit educational, commercial and residential uses. He said the area could also contain parks, a hotel, a conference center and retail uses. Under proposed revisions to the township's master plan, the property could also be designated as a residential receiving area with higher density, according to Remsa. Remsa said if the property is used as a residential receiving area, it could be zoned for two to four units per acre for residential and could have a commercial component for two- and three- story buildings. "A mix of uses next to Allentown may make sense," he said, noting that such uses could capitalize on the site's proximity to Interstate 195 (I-195). When asked what the chances are of the site being used with the Commerce Park overlay, Remsa said, "Land next to an interstate is becoming more scarce. Some other company that builds warehouses may say they'll comply with your ordinance and put them there." The board's vice chairman, Barry Wright, said he would like to see a mixed use at the site. He noted that the land is approved for sewerage and said it would be logical to have another age-restricted community on the site. The Four Seasons active-adult community is nearby on Ellisdale Road. Wright also suggested zoning the area for an extended care facility, saying that part of the property may be suitable for Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) units. While the township has provided plenty of recreational opportunities for younger people, Wright said there are no such facilities for senior residents and that something of that nature could also go on the site. Wright said he would like to see Breza Road improved, and board member Bob Freiberger agreed. Freiberger said that while some Four Seasons residents have opposed opening the road, doing so could keep them alive in an emergency. If Breza Road is improved, he said, ambulances would be able to travel right onto the interstate to Robert Wood Johnson Hospital in Hamilton rather than having to deal with Allentown traffic. "Improvement of Breza Road is an absolute must," he said. Mayor Stephen Fleischacker said there are stream corridor buffers on the site and asked for a larger than normal buffer to preserve the greenway. Chairman Richard Stern asked if the board could make a recommendation for the location of the new middle school. Wright said he had seen photos of where the Upper Freehold Regional Board of Education plans to put the school and that it would go near the Hamilton Township border. "That is ridiculous," he said. Wright said he thought the school should be near Heritage Park. Board Attorney Frank Armenante said the Board of Education should make the first move so that the Planning Board knows where it is coming from and can analyze what steps to take. The Planning Board also discussed designating a higher-density receiving area on the Princeton Nurseries property along Ellisdale Road up to the Heritage Green and Four Seasons developments. "It could help enhance Allentown there," Stern said. The biggest problem with planning for higher density in that area, according to Stern, would be restructuring the road system, which would include the controversial westerly bypass.