MARMORA — A church may not be a home but it is a house of God, and Chapel by the Sea received final approval to build one partially in a residential zone Sept. 5.
The Upper Township Zoning Board approved an amended preliminary and final site plan for construction of a chapel with classrooms.
The board already had granted a use variance and approved the preliminary and major final site plan, as well as preliminary approval for associated bulk variances at 300-306 Route 9 South, during a meeting in spring 2023.
The 8.5-acre property is in both the residential and Marmora Town Center zoning districts.
Last year, the church moved from its longtime home at 55th Street and Asbury Avenue in Ocean City, which was sold and torn down, to its current site at 1314 Route 9.
The original plan called for building of 14,125-square-foot chapel and maintaining three homes on the property as affordable units, along with associated parking (49 spaces) and supportive infrastructure.
The amended plan reduces the size of the church to 12,075 square feet and eliminates the residential uses on the property. Instead, the church will provide a contribution to the township’s affordable housing trust fund.
The board granted a variance for front yard setback, 149.5 feet where township code calls for construction in the front and parking in the rear, and another for a parking deficiency.
The number of parking spaces required was calculated at one for each four seats in the church and two for each classroom, amounting to 50 when 49 are being provided.
– By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff