County Approved Driveway Design on Day of Hearing
Bergen County Planning issued formal acceptance of the revised Cedar Hill Avenue driveway configuration on February 4, 2026 — the same day as the Planning Board hearing. Approval followed changes including narrowing the main entrance from 67 to 36 feet, removing three parking spaces to improve sightlines, and designating compact parking spaces to address internal circulation.
Medical Office Objector Withdraws After Blum Court Plan Dropped
An attorney representing a medical office building near the Cedar Hill Shopping Center withdrew the firm's objection before the February 4 hearing. The objection had been based solely on the proposed Blum Court driveway, which the applicant eliminated from the revised plans. A second interested party reached a separate agreement with the applicant on additional landscaping along the northwest property line.
Environmental Report Still Pending for Flood Hazard Area
As of February 4, the applicant was still awaiting final Flood Hazard Area Verification from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection for portions of the site abutting a small stream along the western property line. The stream is not mapped by FEMA, requiring the applicant to conduct its own hydraulic analysis. Preliminary DEP comments had been received and only minor revisions remained before final approval was expected.
Applicant Agrees to Restrict Truck Deliveries and Hours
As a condition of the application, the developer agreed that tractor-trailer deliveries would be prohibited and only box trucks and smaller vehicles permitted. Deliveries would also be restricted from peak traffic hours — 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. — to minimize congestion at the Cedar Hill Avenue driveways.
Community
CEDAR HILL RETAIL EXPANSION HEARING STRETCHES PAST TEN P.M.
Neighbors on William Way and Kenneth Place pushed back on a proposed new retail building at the Cedar Hill Shopping Center, and the Planning Board carried the application over lingering concerns about the driveway and a proposed sign.
The Wyckoff Planning Board convened a special meeting Wednesday evening to hear testimony on a long-pending application to add a new retail building to the Cedar Hill Shopping Center — and after more than three hours of engineering, architectural, and traffic testimony, the board declined to vote, carrying the application to its March 11 meeting over two unresolved concerns: the configuration of a driveway onto Cedar Hill Avenue, and a proposed directory sign. [1]
The application, filed by UB Wyckoff1, LLC for property at 525 Cedar Hill Avenue, proposes a 4,720-square-foot retail building on what is currently a parking lot at the southern end of the shopping center. The building would accommodate up to four tenants, including a potential restaurant use. It is the second phase of improvements at the site; a 2022 approval that reorganized parking, improved rear-area landscaping, and addressed ADA compliance was granted an extension to allow both phases to be built simultaneously.
The application has a complicated history. Originally filed in 2022, an earlier version of the plan included a new driveway connection to Blum Court to provide a second access point. At the prior public hearing, neighbors and board members raised objections. The applicant pulled back, removed the Blum Court access entirely, and returned to what applicant attorney Jason Tuvel described as a fresh presentation. The removal of the Blum Court driveway allowed the building to grow — from approximately 3,700 to 4,720 square feet — while still meeting all zoning setback requirements in the B-2 Neighborhood Business Zone. [2]
Engineer James Henry of Dynamic Engineering testified that the revised plan improves conditions across the site: impervious coverage drops from 85.5 to 84.4 percent, the chaotically wide Cedar Hill Avenue driveway is narrowed from 67 to 36 feet, parking increases from 239 to 251 spaces, and 211 plantings — including 42 evergreen trees — buffer the property from residential neighbors to the west and north.
"The existing parking layout is inefficient," Mr. Henry testified. "The new layout improves circulation, reduces impervious coverage, and provides more functional parking."
Bergen County, which has jurisdiction over Cedar Hill Avenue as a county road, verbally approved the proposed driveway configuration on the same day as the hearing. County approval followed months of coordination, including the removal of three parking spaces near the driveway to improve sightlines and the designation of six compact spaces on the eastern lot to address circulation concerns.
But the board was not satisfied. Multiple members pressed the applicant to go back to the County and request separate left and right turn lanes at the southern exit — a configuration the County had not approved. Board member Joseph Haftek said he routinely observes traffic stacking at that exit under current conditions and questioned whether narrowing the opening would worsen things. "I experience multiple vehicles queued at the southern exit," he said, asking why the width had to be cut nearly in half.
Traffic engineer Corey Chase testified that the narrowed driveway would generate a 95th-percentile queue of two vehicles or fewer at the exit, and that the queuing would not block parking or interfere with drive-through operations at the Chase Bank on site. He acknowledged that the County preferred a single exit lane for safety reasons but agreed that 36 feet was physically sufficient to stripe separate lanes if the County approved. [3]
Chairman Robert Fortunato called the sign issue equally unresolved. The applicant is requesting a variance for a directory sign on the building's south-facing wall, visible to drivers on Cedar Hill Avenue. Board member Sarah Caprio said she opposed additional signage, describing the zone as intended for neighborhood-scale retail. "I'm not supportive of additional signage," she said. "This zone is not for regional retail visibility."
Neighbors from William Way and Kenneth Place raised concerns about flooding, lighting, and the landscaping promised — but never planted — under the 2022 approval. Darlene Brigante Hernandez of 618 Mountain Avenue asked about potential contamination from a reported dry cleaner investigation; Mr. Henry said the applicant was unaware of any contamination but would inquire with the property owner.
Chairman Fortunato summarized the board's position: the two primary open issues were the driveway and the sign. He directed the applicant to return to Bergen County with the Board Engineer to advocate for a wider exit, and asked the applicant to present a single consolidated site plan at the March 11 hearing combining the 2022 and 2026 approvals. The medical office objector that had previously appeared withdrew its objection after the Blum Court driveway was removed.