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Owner-Occupied and Developers
The one where they turned a McDonald’s into a car dealership
Business Facility Planning | Zoning / Change of use | Planning and Approval
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iCar, Howell, NJ
the situation
The owners of iCar, a used car dealership located in Howell, NJ, purchased a 2-acre property on Rt 9, Howell that was formerly the site of a McDonald’s fast food takeout. They wanted to convert the site to be used for their car dealership - an office and parking lot for their cars.
their challenges
— They needed the zoning and approvals for their car dealership.
They needed the former McDonald’s building to be converted into a new home for their car dealership.
They needed approvals for the conversion, which included:
- A zoning change
- Approvals to park their cars in the parking lot
- Approvals to have an egress and ingress onto State Route 9.
- And the know how of which government department they could turn to to open doors for them and make this dream happen.
All these legalities were complex, with endless paper work to fill out and officials to meet and negotiate with. And they were just business owners - not real estate professionals.
how we helped
— All the approvals, without the headache.
Dealing with the town and city officials was something we’d done many a time - and so was the approval process. We were on it!
How it worked:
- We retained the necessary professionals such as lawyers, engineers and architects.
- We liaised between the professionals and our clients to ensure a smooth and communicative process
- We coordinated the paper work and negotiations with Howell Township.
- We went in front of the board to get a zoning change
- We secured the necessary documents - “Letter of No Interest” - from the New Jersey Department of Transportation, and checked off the box on getting the approval to have the dealership off Rt 9 highway.
The endgame?
— Iconic dealership, fully approved and ready for move-in
With the zoning changed, engineers on board and a Letter of Interest from NJDOT, they converted the building and were able to move their dealership in to the site.
And the site became an icon in the Lakewood, NJ area.
All in all — Coordination + Approvals + Dealership