09-02-09 BOARD OF EDUCATION OF THE CITY OF CLIFTON V. ZONING
BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT OF THE CITY OF CLIFTON
A-0717-07T3
Due to overcrowding at Clifton High School, the Board of
Education of the City of Clifton acquired property, which housed
a vacant warehouse that the Board would convert into a 500-
student ninth-grade annex. Because the property was located in
an industrial zone, where schools are not permitted, a use
variance was required. The Department of Education (DOE)
approved the project but the Zoning Board denied the variance
based on, among other things, on- and off-site safety issues.
We affirmed Judge Passero's reversal of the denial and
grant of the variance, concluding, in part, that the Zoning
Board could not consider on and off-site safety issues because
the Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act,
N.J.S.A. 18A:7G-1 to -48, gave the DOE exclusive jurisdiction
over such issues.
Umair Hussain, Assistant Editor of NJ Personal Injury and Civil Cases
