Planning Board — January 20, 2026
The Board reorganized for 2026, re-electing Mastrangelo as Chairperson and appointing its engineer, attorney, secretary, newspapers, calendar and rules, each 9-0. It extended Fellowship Village's site-plan deadlines (PB22-005B, 9-0), found Fellowship Village's parking-count conditions satisfied (PB13-006C, 6-0), and authorized hiring Allison Fahey of Burgis Associates as Board Planner.
- Government
- Development
Meeting recording
Recording plays on the township archive
This meeting does not play on this page. The township's recording is complete and plays in full on the township's own channel.
What happened
What the record shows
Oaths and attendance
Oaths were administered before the meeting to Adam Subervi (Class I, term to Dec. 31, 2026), John Crane (Class II, to Dec. 31, 2026), John Tompkins (Class III, to Dec. 31, 2026), Joan Bannan (Class IV, the unexpired Cuozzo term to Dec. 31, 2028), Henry Schaefer and Tyler Seville (Class IV, to Dec. 31, 2029) and Julie Smith (Class IV Alternate 1, to Dec. 31, 2027). Eorio, Manduke and Mastrangelo continue. Gagan Agarwal (Alternate 2) was to be sworn at the next meeting.
Present: Bannan, Crane, Eorio, Manduke, Mastrangelo, Schaefer, Seville, Smith, Subervi and Tompkins. Absent: Agarwal (excused). Also present: Board Attorney Jonathan E. Drill, Esq., Substitute Board Engineer Vince DeNave, PE, Township/Board Planner David Schley, PP, AICP, and Board Secretary Joanne Slaman.
Reorganization
Each roll call was 9-0 (ayes Bannan, Crane, Eorio, Manduke, Mastrangelo, Schaefer, Seville, Subervi, Tompkins; Smith ineligible as an alternate):
- Chairperson: Mastrangelo (nominated by Seville, seconded by Bannan). Vice Chairperson: Seville. Vice Chairperson Pro Temp: Eorio.
- Res. #26-01: Aaron Schrager, PE, PP, CME, CPWM, of Excelsior Consulting Engineers, LLC, Board Engineer for 2026.
- Res. #26-02: Jonathan E. Drill, Esq., of Stickel, Koenig, Sullivan & Drill, Board Attorney for 2026.
- Res. #26-03: meeting dates, the first and third Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. in the Municipal Building.
- Res. #26-04: the Board’s Rules and Regulations.
- Joanne Slaman was appointed Board Secretary, and the Bernardsville News and the Courier News were designated the official newspapers, by voice vote.
Drill said the rules will need amending because a new state law allows required legal notices to be published on government websites, and recommended that the Board follow the Township Committee’s posting procedures after March 1, 2026.
Applications
- PB22-005B, Fellowship Village Inc., Block 9301 Lot 33 and Block 9401 Lot 9, 8000 Fellowship Road and 55 Allen Road. Attorney Kenneth D. McPherson III (Gibbons P.C.) asked to extend, by at least 90 days, the deadlines in Conditions #1 and #14 of the October 3, 2023 site plan and conditional use approval (already extended to Dec. 31, 2025 for signing plans and June 30, 2026 for permits). The Board set June 30, 2026 for signing plans and December 31, 2026 for permits. Granted on motion Bannan, second Mastrangelo, 9-0 (Smith ineligible). No one from the public spoke.
- PB13-006C, Fellowship Village Inc., 8000 Fellowship Road, the annual parking report required by the 2016 approval of the health center expansion and theater. Traffic engineer Douglas J. Polyniak, PE (Dolan & Dean) presented Parking Evaluation #3 (Dec. 17, 2025), with counts on four weekdays and at a sold-out theater event on Dec. 14, 2025. Executive Director Mark Aguilar said large events are coordinated so that no more than one happens at a time and that he has had no parking complaints. DeNave, citing Excelsior’s letter of Jan. 16, 2026, concluded the conditions were satisfied and recommended no further evaluations. On motion Smith, second Seville, the Board found the parking-count conditions satisfied, 6-0 (ayes Crane, Eorio, Manduke, Mastrangelo, Seville, Smith; Bannan, Schaefer, Subervi and Tompkins ineligible).
Board Planner and other business
- December 2, 2025 minutes adopted, 4-0.
- After an executive session (8:30–9:04 p.m.) on the Board’s professionals, the Board authorized the Chairwoman to hire Allison Fahey of Burgis Associates, Inc. as Board Planner for 2026 (motion Manduke, second Seville, 9-0).
- The Chairwoman cancelled the February 3 meeting. The meeting adjourned at 9:07 p.m.
Public participation
One member of the public spoke: Todd Edelstein, 172 Riverside Drive, asked on PB13-006C whether the counts included public and employee spaces and how many days were counted.
Records
- Minutes (township document page; Res. #26-01 to #26-04 attached)
- Reorganization agenda (township document page)
- Regular agenda (township document page)
- Notice of contract awards (township notice)
- Video on the township’s YouTube channel. This page follows the Board’s minutes.