Reconfigured Rand's Plaza Approved

The back parking lot of Rand's Shopping Plaza will be reconfigured with nine fewer parking spaces, thanks to an applicant's request for better safety at a day care center there.

The day care center came before the Toms River Planning Board recently to request permission for a new parking lot design.

The day care is located in the back portion of the plaza, not the part that is adjacent Hooper Avenue.

Attorney Joseph Michelini noted the board had approved a daycare in this exact same building in 2007. Now a new owner was seeking to take over the site after a period of vacancy, and the board was shown plans of what was previously approved and the applicant’s proposal.

The only major change from the prior proposal was the elimination nine parking spaces north of the building, which the applicant’s engineer Richard Butryn said was being proposed for safety reasons are the parking spaces are close to where cars drop off the children.

Butryn said parking in rear of the center is almost never filled to capacity. He also noted since the 2007 application the lot owner installed five spaces on the western portion of the shopping center and 13 spaces near another business in the center so even with the loss of nine spaces the center still has nine more spaces than what the board approved in 2007.

The board unanimously approved the applicant’s request.