Franklin Township Zoning Board Hearing on Tawheed Dahwah Center – October 22, 2026

The Franklin Township Zoning Board of Adjustment met on Thursday, October 22, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. to continue the quasi-judicial hearing for ZBA-24-00017, an amended preliminary and final site plan plus relief of a condition for a 19,350-square-foot place of worship at 630 South Middlebush Road, Somerset (Block 37.02, Lot 46.03, A Zone). The meeting was the fifth or sixth hearing on the application and was carried from October 15, 2026. No final decision was made; the board continued the hearing to November 19, 2026.

Preliminary Matters and Process

• Roll call was taken; two members were excused. Chairman Thomas confirmed that Commissioners Shepard and Dowherty had reviewed the tape of the prior meeting and would be eligible to vote.
• The board noted that there were no minutes or resolutions before it.
• The chairman explained the board’s three-step quasi-judicial process: testimony and cross-examination, closing statements and public comment, and board deliberation. He reminded attendees that public comment comes later, not during witness testimony.
• Applicant’s attorney, Mr. Schwartz, disputed what he called misinformation: the property is zoned for religious use as a conditional use and had prior approval for religious use; no testimony supports hundreds of vehicles; and most of the site will remain green area.
• Mr. Schwartz also stated that the applicant would affirmatively endorse and recommend to the Somerset County Planning Board a left-turn lane on South Middlebush Road and asked the board attorney to make it a condition of any approval.

Applicant Planner Testimony on Parking and Conditions

• Applicant planner Ms. Tran testified about parking under the zoning ordinance adopted in August 2026, which requires one parking space per three occupants.
• Under the TRC’s prior method, occupancy was one person per 15 square feet in the 6,864-square-foot worship area, producing no parking variance and a preferred requirement of about 153 spaces.
• To be conservative, the architect used an IBC assembly occupancy of one person per 7 square feet of 3,456 square feet of net occupied worship floor area, yielding 493 occupants and a parking requirement of 165 spaces. Ms. Tran said this would leave a parking variance of eight spaces if that methodology were used, but she did not believe that methodology was required.
• Chairman Thomas proposed tailoring parking to the applicant’s own testimony: 75 regular spaces plus 5 ADA spaces, eliminating a parking lot and requiring a variance. Mr. Schwartz said he needed to discuss that proposal with his client and professionals.
• Planning Director Healy noted potential benefits of fewer spaces: greater board control over attendance, reduced site disturbance, less stormwater runoff, less tree removal, and more buffering.
• Ms. Tran also testified that the applicant would comply with the prior approval’s earth-tone color condition for the scenic corridor; metal and glass-fiber-reinforced concrete elements would have a matte finish with no backlighting; the Edison facility will remain open separately for its local community; and the Franklin/Somerset facility will serve local worshippers.

Objectors’ Attorney Cross-Examination

• Martina Bailey, attorney for the neighboring Snyder Farm, cross-examined Ms. Tran. She questioned whether the IBC net-floor-area calculation was reliable when the plans showed a 6,864-square-foot worship area, asked what relief was actually being requested, and argued the board needs clarity on the D3 variance and modified-condition standards.
• Ms. Bailey identified three prior conditions being modified: condition 26 (use/occupancy), condition 22 (banked parking, from 30 to 60 spaces), and condition 29 (no weddings or funerals; applicant now says weddings may occur with a special event permit).
• She questioned the applicant’s use of the Dunkin’ Donuts case and cited PRB Enterprises for the proposition that conditional-use boards may consider on-site and off-site traffic criteria. She also asked whether a 49.1-foot spire is consistent with scenic corridor criteria; Ms. Tran testified that it is.

Objectors’ Traffic Expert Testimony

• The objectors presented Daniel Klein, a New Jersey professional engineer and traffic operations engineer, as an expert in traffic engineering, transportation planning, and parking analysis.
• Mr. Klein testified that the applicant’s traffic study omitted the Friday afternoon peak prayer period. He cited ITE trip-generation data for a roughly 7,000-square-foot mosque: about 71 vehicles entering and 94 exiting in the Friday peak hour, with an average parking demand of 143 cars and an 85th-percentile demand of as many as 210 parked cars.
• He said his observations at mosques in Clifton and Parsippany showed overflow parking spilling onto streets when parking was full, and that this site has no safe overflow parking.
• He compared the prior approved use’s maximum attendance to the proposed use’s maximums: roughly 7,530 visits per year for Dada Bagwan versus possibly 108,300 per year for Tawheed under the applicant’s own stated maximums, though he agreed peak-hour activity is the meaningful traffic measure.
• He testified that a left-turn lane is important to mitigate southbound congestion, but that design, right-of-way, utility and drainage issues must be resolved, and recommended tying the left-turn lane to construction and occupancy.
• Under cross-examination by Mr. Schwartz, Mr. Klein acknowledged he is not Muslim and has no expertise in mosque operations, had not heard the applicant’s November 2025 testimony about member geography, did not know how many mosques are nearby, and had not interviewed worshippers. Several Muslim residents challenged his assumptions about how Muslims choose mosques and whether Friday services would cause overflow.

Public Cross-Examination and Comments

• Residents asked about left-turn lane length and county jurisdiction, stormwater runoff, bus arrivals, enforcement, and the credibility of attendance limits.
• Multiple residents expressed concern that the attendance and parking limits cannot be enforced and that even with fines or towing there is no immediate remedy for travelers on South Middlebush Road.
• One resident asked how the county approval process would feed back to the board; the township engineer said that, under site plan compliance, the applicant would need county design and approval before building permits and installation before occupancy.
• The board cut off several questioners who attempted to make comments or ask questions outside the scope of the witness’s testimony, reminding them they would have an opportunity for public comments later.

Key Outcomes

• No vote was taken on the application.
• The hearing was continued to November 19, 2026, at 6:30 p.m.; no further notice is required.
• The applicant committed to affirmatively supporting and requesting a left-turn lane on South Middlebush Road with Somerset County, subject to the county’s jurisdiction, and to having that commitment included as a condition of approval.
• The parking-space reduction proposal (75 standard spaces plus 5 ADA, or about 80 total, versus the plan’s larger layout) was left unresolved pending the applicant’s discussion with his client and professionals.
• Board attorney and staff indicated that any county approvals, including the left-turn lane, would need to be completed before the township would sign off on the site plan, and installation would be required before occupancy.