Cherry Hill zoners okay electrical substation; PSE&G to plant or fund trees to replace those removed.

Construction of a Public Service Electric and Gas Co. electrical substation in Cherry Hill that calls for removing 591 trees on an Evesham Road property unanimously was approved by the Zoning Board of Adjustment on Thursday night.

The Echelon Substation — required because of increased development in Cherry Hill and Evesham — will sit on heavily wooded land that PSE&G is buying from Congregation M'kor Shalom on the Evesham and Voorhees borders.

Residents protested the plan in the public comment part of the meeting, saying it will adversely impact health, noise levels, wildlife and property values in nearby neighborhoods. Some members of the public who spoke said PSE&G's plan falls short on detail.

In return for clear-cutting 591 trees, PSE&G said a deed restriction for the land would preserve the acreage beyond the substation and prevent it from being developed. The substation will take up about three acres of the nearly 11-acre parcel.

Many of the targeted trees are more than 20 inches in diameter, measured at breast height, according to an inventory filed with PSE&G's application to the Township. One red maple is listed at 35.6 inches in diameter and a tulip tree is 37.5 inches.

Plans from PSE&G initially called for planting 44 new trees on the site, but, after meeting with Township officials, the utility agreed to plant about 100 new trees on the property, said John Futey, the landscape architect representing PSE&G.

Lawyer Jennifer Carrillo-Perez, of the Connell Foley law firm representing PSE&G, told the board that the utility is voluntarily increasing the number of trees to 100 on the site. Carrillo-Perez said that PSE&G also would pay a Township tree fund $300 for each of the 491 removed trees, or a total of $147,300. The money would be used to plant trees elsewhere in Cherry Hill.

Cherry Hill Township Council, concerned about continued tree removals in the community, on Monday announced it was preparing a tree ordinance that could become the "harshest" tree replacement law in the state, according to officials. A draft copy of the ordinance was not available, but a compensatory tree fund likely would be part of the new law.

Abraham Ferdas, representing the Township Environmental Board, told zoning board members that his board supports the PSE&G proposal and views the PSE&G contribution as a great beginning to establishing a tree fund. He said the Environmental Board has advocated for such a fund for some time. 

The property once was farmland and many of the trees began growing about 30 years ago, board solicitor Sandy Zeller, of Zeller & Wieliczko LLP of Cherry Hill, told members at a caucus before the meeting. Between 2,700 and 2,800 trees grow on the part of the property that would be preserved, he said.

» READ MORE: Denuding Cherry Hill: Community alarmed, urges action, over number of trees falling to development.

» READ MORE: Cherry Hill Township considers rules that may result in the 'harshest' tree protection law in the state.

Board members voted 6-0 to approve the preliminary and final site plans, the subdivision plan and several variances.

The variances include exceeding a 35-foot structure height limit. An A-frame structure at the substation will be 70 feet tall and monopole structures with power lines will be 135 feet tall. The substation is a permitted use for the property.

Voting in favor were Daniel DiRenzo Jr., Joseph DiSalvo, Nacovin Norman, Anju Pejavara, Wyatt Sklar and Marshall Spevak. Members Chris Bruner, Gregory Bruno and Johnathan Rardin were recused because of relationships with M'kor Shalom or the applicant.

"This is certainly not the project I would have chosen," member Spevak told the board.

However, he said he was in favor of the plan because Cherry Hill residents would benefit from a reliable electrical power structure. Spevak also said he appreciated PSE&G's commitment to contribute to a Township tree preservation fund. 

The plan still needs permits from the state Department of Environmental Protection because of wetlands on the property. The proposal also goes before the Camden County Planning Board next Tuesday.

Kyle King, PSE&G's consulting engineer, told the board that the Marlton Substation on the northbound side of Route 73 next to the Bonefish Grill restaurant was operating at 109% of capacity in 2019 and, with no changes, is projected to be at 117% of capacity by 2024.

The substations are connected to high-voltage transmission lines and reduce the voltage from 230,000 volts to 13,000 volts, which then is sent over local transmission lines. Local transformers, in turn, reduce the voltage again, to be distributed to homes and businesses.  

"We need to add an additional source of energy within this area," King said of the substation on Evesham Road.

Substations are unmanned and monitored remotely.

The new substation would be built by spring 2023 and, after electrical construction, it would go online in spring 2024, according to PSE&G testimony.

Township residents who testified said they opposed PSE&G's substation.

"I'm extremely concerned about this proposed plan," said Kshma Soni, who lives on Sandringham Road behind the property. "I see this as a huge health hazard." She said toxic chemicals are used in electrical substation equipment.

Soni said her home is close to the project — she said she could see her home in a PSE&G photo simulation of the site — and feared her home's value will fall for several reasons, including limited privacy in her backyard.

"We are the ones who will be living with this decision of the zoning board forever," she said.

Xia Lin and Hongrong Lin, a couple who owns a Sandringham Road property, also testified about what they believe would be a negative impact on their neighborhood. They said the removal of the trees will adversely affect noise levels and pollution. The trees, Hongrong Lin said, serve as a noise barrier from the traffic sounds of busy Evesham Road.

Martha Wright, of Munn Lane, said the PSE&G application was short on specifics. She said the project would provide no new jobs or services to Cherry Hill residents and that the PSE&G representatives could not say how many Cherry Hill homes would be served by the substation.

PSE&G's tree replacement plan does not make up for the loss from cutting down 591 trees, resident Rena Margulis, of School Lane, told the board. A few hundred trees planted around Cherry Hill will not replace the current wildlife habitat on Evesham Road, she said.

Anne Einhorn, of Edgemoor Road, said PSE&G's tree trimming program in Cherry Hill neighborhoods has decimated the trees.

She called for the board to table the proposal. "It will definitely impact the residents who are close to this site," she said. 

The 21-acre M'kor Shalom property was vacant and wooded before the construction of the synagogue building in the late 1980s. A plan in 2018 to subdivide the land and build a 66-bed, assisted-living facility by Cherry Hill Care Group LLC had been approved by the Planning Board, but the project never moved forward.

M'kor Shalom and Temple Emmanuel, at Kresson and Springdale Roads, in January announced plans to merge this year. After the announcement, M'kor Shalom president Drew Molotsky told 70and73.com that the synagogue building and property would be sold after the M'kor Shalom congregation moves to Temple Emmanuel.