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Record of Proceedings

Franklin Township Planning Board Meeting – February 4, 2026

Planning Board — Wednesday, February 4, 2026
BodyFranklin Township, New Jersey
SessionPlanning Board
DateWednesday, February 4, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:45:32

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:00

According to the open public meetings law appeal 1975 Chapter 231, this regular meeting of the Planning Board of the Championship notice has been provided.

0:09

If everyone could please stand for the pledge.

0:14

I pledge allegiance to the flag.

0:18

And to the Republic, for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

0:33

Councilman Mbart.

0:35

Oh, wait, is this on?

0:36

Councilman M.

0:37

Bowerson.

0:37

Here.

0:38

Theodore Chase.

0:39

Robert McCourt.

0:41

Mark Dancy.

0:43

Jennifer Ragnow?

0:45

Here.

0:45

Mahir Rafi.

0:46

Charles Brown.

0:47

Here.

0:47

Robert Thomas.

0:48

Here.

0:49

Chairman Rassini.

0:50

Here.

0:52

So just before the meeting, Councilman Rahm was sworn in.

0:58

So welcome back from India.

1:01

You are probably shocked by the climate change.

1:06

Between where you were and where you are.

1:09

It's a hundred degree swing.

1:12

Oh my gosh.

1:13

I believe it.

1:15

I very much believe it.

1:16

But uh yeah, welcome.

1:24

So um so what we have tonight is a couple of so we don't have any hearings tonight.

1:29

We have a couple of resolutions.

1:31

Um we have a discussion item, and then we're going to talk about the master plan.

1:36

Um, the level of the master plan.

1:39

So um there was one person on the board who actually did what they were asked to do back in December, and that person needs to be acknowledged as Jen Ragna.

1:49

And and so um since the rest of since the rest of the I've since received a few more comments.

1:55

No, no, but the original assignment and the date due, the only person who got it right was the um the teacher in our say that's the teacher in her as it has been as well it as well it should be.

2:11

So so not anything to be embarrassed about.

2:13

It's it's a good thing.

2:15

Um but since then the rest of us, myself included, have come to heal.

2:19

So we uh we will have that discussion tonight.

2:22

And the and the discussion we really want to do tonight is identify what we feel needs to be done.

2:26

Mark is then gonna collate those comments, and at the next meeting, we are going to have a list and we're going to prioritize what we would like to work on, and then after that we'll start working on it.

2:36

So that's how tonight's gonna go.

2:38

And I'll let Mark run the uh uh master plan discussion, and he's received our notes.

2:44

All of you have received my notes, uh, so we'll we'll go from there.

2:48

So um we have no minutes tonight.

2:51

We have an extension of time uh for Baldwin's Realty.

2:54

Those are two warehouses off West and Canal Road.

2:57

Uh we gave them to January 3rd of next year, so um Christine.

3:02

Just the councilman and um Jennifer cannot vote.

3:08

Uh make a motion to approve.

3:09

Second.

3:11

Theodore Chase, yes, Robert LeCourt.

3:14

Yes.

3:14

Mihir Rafique, yes.

3:16

Charles Brown?

3:17

Yes.

3:17

Robert Thomas, yes, Chairman Rsini.

3:19

Yes.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Land Development██████████████14%
Procedural█████████████13%
Zoning Regulations███████████11%
Parks and Recreation██████████10%
Environmental Protection█████████9%
Public Works███████7%
Sidewalk Funding███████7%
Affordable Housing█████5%
Engineering And Infrastructure████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Franklin Township Planning Board Meeting – February 4, 2026

The Franklin Township Planning Board met on February 4, 2026, to approve two resolutions, form an Open Space Steering Committee, and discuss the 2026 Master Plan Re-examination. The meeting included board comments on invasive species and bamboo enforcement, and a detailed work session on the draft master plan re-examination report.

Consent Calendar / Resolutions

  • Baldwas Realty, LLC (PLN-22-00009) – Approved a time extension for two warehouses off West and Canal Road to January 3, 2027. Motion carried unanimously (7-0; Councilman Anbarasan and Jennifer Ragnow did not vote on this item).
  • NPH Real Estate, LLC (PLN-24-00005) – Approved a resolution for a previously approved application. Motion carried unanimously (6-0).

Discussion Items

  • Open Space Plan Steering Committee – Chairman Rassini and board planner Mark Healy proposed forming a steering committee to update the 2013 Open Space and Recreation Plan. Recommended membership: 2 from Planning Board, 2 from Open Space Committee, 2 from Recreation Advisory Committee, and 1 each from Trails, Agricultural, and Historic committees. Advisory members would include Mark Healy, the Director of Recreation, and a Council liaison. The board approved the formation of the committee unanimously.
  • Master Plan Re-examination (2026) – Mark Healy presented the third draft, highlighting changes: updated references to the adopted BI zone master plan, fair share housing plan updates, and recommendations on cluster zoning, outdoor storage regulations, sidewalks, and building height measurement. He noted that the board should adopt the re-examination by February 18 to meet the 10-year requirement, but could add further topics later.

Board Comments

  • Chairman Rassini discussed the New Jersey Invasive Species Act, which bans propagation within one year and sale within four years of species like Bradford pear, barberry, burning bush, and bamboo. He urged enforcement and noted that bamboo is already regulated by township ordinance.
  • Board member Robert McCourt commented on bamboo enforcement challenges, noting that his own property has grandfathered bamboo.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were made.

Key Outcomes

  • Resolutions Approved: Both time extension and final resolution passed.
  • Open Space Steering Committee Formed: The committee will begin work on updating the open space and recreation plan; membership will be finalized later.
  • Master Plan Re-examination: The board agreed to adopt the current draft on February 18, 2026, and to add a bullet-point list of additional topics raised during the meeting for future prioritization. Topics included: sidewalk fund transparency and gap completion, rail-to-trail (East Millstone branch), crime prevention through environmental design, cultural assets and community identity, accessory dwelling units (ADUs), drone regulation, traffic calming and truck routes. These will be discussed in work sessions later in 2026.
  • Next Meeting: February 18, 2026, for hearings on the master plan re-examination and fair share housing plan amendments.

Meeting Transcript

According to the open public meetings law appeal 1975 Chapter 231, this regular meeting of the Planning Board of the Championship notice has been provided. If everyone could please stand for the pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag. And to the Republic, for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Councilman Mbart. Oh, wait, is this on? Councilman M. Bowerson. Here. Theodore Chase. Robert McCourt. Mark Dancy. Jennifer Ragnow? Here. Mahir Rafi. Charles Brown. Here. Robert Thomas. Here. Chairman Rassini. Here. So just before the meeting, Councilman Rahm was sworn in. So welcome back from India. You are probably shocked by the climate change. Between where you were and where you are. It's a hundred degree swing. Oh my gosh. I believe it. I very much believe it. But uh yeah, welcome. So um so what we have tonight is a couple of so we don't have any hearings tonight. We have a couple of resolutions. Um we have a discussion item, and then we're going to talk about the master plan. Um, the level of the master plan. So um there was one person on the board who actually did what they were asked to do back in December, and that person needs to be acknowledged as Jen Ragna. And and so um since the rest of since the rest of the I've since received a few more comments. No, no, but the original assignment and the date due, the only person who got it right was the um the teacher in our say that's the teacher in her as it has been as well it as well it should be. So so not anything to be embarrassed about. It's it's a good thing. Um but since then the rest of us, myself included, have come to heal. So we uh we will have that discussion tonight. And the and the discussion we really want to do tonight is identify what we feel needs to be done. Mark is then gonna collate those comments, and at the next meeting, we are going to have a list and we're going to prioritize what we would like to work on, and then after that we'll start working on it. So that's how tonight's gonna go. And I'll let Mark run the uh uh master plan discussion, and he's received our notes. All of you have received my notes, uh, so we'll we'll go from there. So um we have no minutes tonight. We have an extension of time uh for Baldwin's Realty. Those are two warehouses off West and Canal Road. Uh we gave them to January 3rd of next year, so um Christine.

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