CAPE MAY POINT — Borough Commission is looking into drafting an ordinance to incorporate rules regarding accessibility ramps/lifts and cantilevered houses.
Mayor Anita VanHeeswyk said Jan. 27 that the existing ordinance does not adequately address ramps. Both VanHeeswyk and Deputy Mayor Elise Geiger sit on the borough’s Planning Board.
“These were Planning Board subject matters, and I initially brought up the issues of ramps,” VanHeeswyk said, noting there was a difference between temporary and permanent needs for ramps.
She added that she felt temporary ramps should be handled differently and not subject to the zoning setbacks.
“The lifts or ramps that are permanent are going to be dealt with as per our code for setbacks, and then special barrier-free ramps will be handled differently,” she said, adding that she agreed with what the Planning Board had suggested.
Geiger said the other issue the Planning Board asked the commission to look at is cantilevered houses, noting there are a few prominent homes in the borough in which the second story is larger than the first.
“You basically have 2,000 square feet or so of a floor area ratio that you can use, so in a cantilevered situation, you would have less on the bottom and more on the top,” Geiger said. “Which can create a sense of bulk.”
Borough code indicates the bottom part of the house can be no less than 600 square feet, Geiger said, adding that the Planning Board would like to take that number to a ratio.
VanHeeswyk added that 2,100 square feet would be the maximum allowed on a 5,000-square-foot lot. That ratio leaves 1,500 square feet on the upper floor, which VanHeeswyk said addresses the visual bulk.
“In case the house is being built on a lot that is more than just our standard 5,000 square foot lot, they’d like to make that to 40 percent of the living area on the first floor,” Geiger said. “If you do the math, basically it will increase from 600 to about 800 square feet that need to be on the bottom, and the rest of the square footage can be on the top.”
She added that the Planning Board is also looking to address what happens under the cantilevering. The borough code addresses the square footage of the imprint on the property.
“How does that get decided? As you know, 30 percent is the house, 60 percent is the vegetation and an extra 10 percent can be for walkways and other in general,” she said. “What they would like to do is clarify that underneath the cantilevered section, that area is now considered part of the building imprint.”
Additionally, even if vegetation were present under the cantilever, it would not be considered in the 60 percent landscaping and vegetation plan.
“I hesitated a little bit at the Planning Board meeting about this, but it was pointed out to me that in this particular case, the person wouldn’t put any vegetation,” Geiger said. “They would probably put pavers or something else underneath the house and that’s how they would deal with it.”
Geiger said the percentage for the cantilevered structure reduces the amount of cantilevering allowed, and the space beneath the cantilevered section counts toward the house’s bulk on the lot.
“I was in agreement with not counting any of the space under the house as vegetative, because rain can’t come down and water anything,” VanHeeswyk said. “I’m completely in favor of this and including the vegetation wording.”
Commissioner Suzanne Yunghans asked whether the change was retroactive or would apply only going forward. VanHeeswyk said it was going forward and that zoning ordinances are not retroactive.
“It is a way of influencing design, which is one of the things we kind of struggle with at the Planning Board,” Geiger said. “How much do we limit some of the design work that is done here?”
Clerk Elaine Wallace said she would draft an ordinance incorporating those changes into the zoning and send it to solicitor John Amenhauser for review.
House numbers
In other business, Geiger said enforcement has begun on the borough’s requirement that house numbers be visible from the street. The requirement began Nov. 1, 2025, with an expected compliance date of Dec. 15.
Borough code requires owners or occupants of buildings to place a number on the building so it is visible from the street, no less than 4 inches tall and plainly displayed. The numbers must also be in contrasting colors from the home to be plainly visible.
“We put out an email update to those that are in our system, to advise homeowners that we’re going to be looking at house numbers to determine compliance to our ordinance,” Geiger said. “The key reason to do this is safety; for first responders, whether police, fire or EMS, they must be able to easily find your house.”
Geiger said the code enforcement officer completed an inspection of all houses in Cape May Point, and 102 properties do not conform to the ordinance.
“About 50 percent of them have no numbers, and the other 50 percent have what I would call contrast issues, or they’re obscured by vegetation and therefore not readily readable.”
Letters will be going out to homeowners not in compliance, noting the issue and requesting correction by March 1.
Public Works
Yunghans said Public Works did a great job on the roads during the snowstorm and urged residents to move their cars off the road to make it easier for plowing operations.
“For those residents who don’t have a driveway, perhaps they can ask neighbors that are not here during the winter if they can use their driveway so it is easier for Public Works team to get through all the roads,” she said.
During the winter months, Yunghans said Public Works performs routine vehicle maintenance and monitors the town for water main breaks.
“A few weeks ago, before the storm and cold weather, a sample of the lake mats were installed in Lake Lily,” she said. “It went really well and thank you to Public Works for putting them together, getting them in the water.”
Borough Commission introduced an ordinance to appropriate $80,000 from the capital reserve to purchase a Public Works vehicle and a water softener.
“The diesel pickup truck will be used for Public Works and also for water/sewer utility,” Yunghans said. “The current truck has reached its lifespan of 25 years and 201,000 miles.”
The water softener is intended to help with the excess of iron in the water at the new well in Pavilion Circle. Yunghans added they will be getting a quote for mitigation.
By RACHEL SHUBIN/Special to the Star and Wave
