FACING LEGAL ACTION, KOLLEL KINYAN TORAH AGREES TO NEGOTIATE WITH THEIR NEIGHBORS

Earlier this year, Kollel Kinyan Torah / Circle Time ignored opposition from numerous neighbors and rushed to obtain site plan approval from the Lakewood Township Planning Board for a child care center expansion.

In response, a group of 13 White Street / New Egypt area residents - represented by Toms River Attorney Rob Shea Esq. - filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn the Township Planning Board's site plan approval.

The complaint filed in New Jersey Superior Court in Ocean County asserts the Board’s approval was riddled with procedural flaws, jurisdictional oversteps, and inadequate public safeguards and must be overturned.

Count II challenges the height approval, claiming improper calculations favored the applicant. Count III asserts the Board lacked jurisdiction, as combining a school and daycare on one lot demands a use variance only the Board of Adjustment can grant. Count IV details notice deficiencies that deprived the public of fair input, with emails bouncing between addresses and last-minute changes confusing stakeholders. Count V calls the decision arbitrary, as waivers for design elements like stormwater management and buffers were granted without sufficient testimony or evidence of hardship. Count VI argues the resolution itself is flawed, lacking specific findings of fact and conclusory language required by law.

Finally, Count I alleges the Board failed to maintain a clear record - no transcript was available, and the audio from the township's website was garbled, violating open public records laws.

Faced with this lawsuit, the Kollel’s attorney Adam Pfeffer Esq. told Judge Francis Hodgson that the developers have agreed to accommodate the neighbors with revised plans. The plans are expected to be submitted to the Planning Board in approximately 60 days.

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