HOWELL – The Township Council has heard many code enforcement-related concerns over the past few years, including the latest from residents concerned about a large “pole barn” installed in the backyard at 126 Darien Road. This pole barn is larger than the house next to it, according to the residents, who believe its construction was suspicious given the town’s zoning laws.
According to the resident who raised this concern at the last meeting, it appears that the entire backyard housing the pole barn has concrete. That happened just before the weather changed in the fall. About a month ago, a truck pulled up to that property, and just a few days later, a fully finished pole barn the size of the house appeared in the backyard.
That led to speculation among locals about the pole barn’s purpose. Questions began to arise that compelled one of them to speak out at the latest town council meeting.
Upon further investigation, one of the residents found a recent story from Manchester Township in which the zoning board denied an application to convert a private residence into a Mikvah, a ritual bath in the Jewish faith. During their research, they found that the Jewish community is fundraising to have one installed in Howell and that these baths can be held in a pole barn, provided they have a connection to natural water, such as rainwater or springwater.
While it has not been confirmed that this is the pole barn’s intended use, the building’s legality in a residential zone remains in question. Additionally, it was confirmed that the building’s permit application had already been approved.
Howell’s town manager, John Gross, and township attorney, Caitlin Harney, said in response that they are looking at tweaking the residential zoning regulations regarding the design of buildings and other things of that nature to tighten up the regulations going forward, but did not speak about anything being done to the pole barn directly.
This is another concern raised by residents, in a long line of issues related to possible zoning law violations in Howell. In the summer of last year, the town government had issues with sober-living homes that were located near schools. Those homes have since been shut down. Other issues have arisen from religious groups using homes as a designated place of worship.
In addition to concerns about the pole barn, one citizen approached the council regarding the trap-and-release program for stray cats in Howell. This has been an ongoing point of tension between the town’s residents and the town government.
Gross reiterated that nothing has changed with the TNR program and that they are still working with the ASPCA for now. On top of that, Gross reiterated that the town has no intention of canceling the TNR program, even with certain animal control services going up for bid. He also mentioned that they hope to maintain their relationship with the ASPCA, as he was told that a higher-up in the Monmouth County sector of the organization would be submitting a bid.
