The Blairstown Land Use Board approved a deed-restricted residence over a garage at its August meeting, which was finalized at its September meeting.
A home on Mud Pond Road, owned by Ryan Cino, received the variance that would allow an apartment that would include utilities. A restriction on the variance would forbid the apartment from being rented to anyone outside of the family of the current owners or subsequent owners.
The area where the property is located is zoned for single-family homes and non-commercial uses.
At the August hearing, Cino testified that the garage was built to house and maintain his motorcycles for personal use. He said he does not do any commercial work on the property.
He said that he would like to use the apartment for a family member and that he understands that if he sells the property, the restrictions on the apartment would continue under future owners.
Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer
Joe was lured out of retirement by the opportunity to be a part of the Ridge View Echo. During a decades-long career in publishing and journalism, he has covered government on many levels from local school boards to the United States Supreme Court.
Along the way, Joe has worked at American Lawyer Magazine, The National Law Journal and The Record among other publications, and as the Press Officer of Columbia Law School. His work has been recognized with several first place awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the New Jersey Press Association.
Being part of the Ridge View Echo brings Joe back to his roots and the kind of news coverage he loves: Telling the stories of people and local communities as well as keeping an eye on how their money is spent by their government officials.
Joe lives in Blairstown with his wife Rose, the founder of Quilting for a Cause, and their two wiener dogs. He is an artist in his spare time.
