Zoners approve larger home on Lund Avenue Neighbor objects, calls it the start of more 'McMansions' BY JAY BODAS Staff Writer EDISON - The Zoning Board of Adjustment recently unanimously approved construction of a new house on Lund Avenue. A one-story home and shed formerly sat on the roughly 80-by-116-foot property, according to the township engineer's report. "My former home was already demolished two months ago," said applicant Ashok Patel. "I had lived there for approximately 11 years." Patel wants to build a new two-and-one-half story, single-family dwelling on the west side of Lund Avenue. There will be no adverse impact on the neighborhood from the new house, said Paul J. Fletcher, the applicant's planner. "With regards to drainage, the plan proposes to direct all water from the ground to the gutter line of Lund Avenue," Fletcher said. "We are also proposing curbing and sidewalk along the frontage, so there would be no adverse impact to other properties, as all water runoff would go directly to the street." There are other homes of similar size in the neighborhood, he said. "This section of Edison has a lot of large homes and larger homes," Fletcher said. Fletcher based his analysis on a visual inspection, he said. But Patel's neighbor, Eugene Medaglia, objected to the proposed house, calling it a "McMansion." "You have to maintain the suburbanality of Edison," Medaglia said. "You can build a beautiful home on that property without having houses on top of each other. I have no objection to a house going up, but I think a stand has to be made in Edison where you don't have the McMansions built on an undersized lot." Medaglia said he thought the new home would "lead the way" for other property owners on the street to build oversized homes. "It will just not look like the suburbs any more," he said. Medaglia said that he was also concerned that more people would live in the new house than were intended. "But I will take Mr. Patel's word that it is just his family," he said. James Clarkin, Patel's attorney, said that "by Edison standards," the application was not overly large. "We are talking about a variance for a side-yard setback in the amount of 15 inches," said. "What I ask you to keep in mind is that the statute requires, in order to deny, you have to find that the detriment rises to the level of substantial. We respectfully submit that 15 inches is not a substantial detriment." Board member Robert Karabinchak moved to approve the application. "The conditions are that the application will comply with the township engineer's reports," he said. "Any runoff will go to the street. Also, the next condition is that the applicant will not apply for a deck or increasing impervious coverage in the backyard to further increase impervious coverage."