WEST CAPE MAY — The planning/zoning board on Oct. 6 approved a plan by Dock Mike’s Pancake House to build a 1,500-square-foot addition to create a new apartment space and make improvements to the restaurant to support dinner service.
The carriage house-style structure along McCullough Alley will add storage and refrigeration for the restaurant to accommodate a new seasonal dinner shift. It also will provide a pass-through delivery entrance to the kitchen.
Professionals for Michael Tramutolo of Dock Mike’s noted that it will also conceal unsightly freezers, ventilation systems, trash and recycling enclosures from public view, screening rear service areas along McCullough Alley and Sunset Boulevard from neighbors across the street.
“They see the dumpsters, they see a disorganized parking lot, they see the ventilation system on top of the restaurant. So it’s really not a sightly view,” attorney Anthony Monzo said. “This is a much better application. It cleans up the site.”
Brian Newswanger, architect for the applicant, said it’s better for the neighbors.
“There is a nice house across the street called the Carriage House that would be staring directly into our back of house, and I think this certainly cleans it up for them,” he said.
Tramutolo told the Star and Wave that the restaurant is being expanded to support dinner service, being offered for the first time in the history of Dock Mike’s.
How to address a preexisting non-conforming residential use on the ground floor and parking consumed much of the discussion.
Having a residential use on the first floor, in this case a kitchen and laundry area associated with an existing residence above the restaurant, is not permitted in the C-3 zone. At the board’s meeting Aug. 4, the application was put on hold and granted a two-month postponement to come back with a plan that addresses the ground-floor use matter.
On Oct. 6, Monzo and board solicitor Richard King concurred that applying for a D-2 variance — expansion of a pre-existing nonconforming use — was the best way to address the first-floor kitchen issue.
Monzo shared past permits that were granted for various improvements at the property, related to the existing residence granted to Tramutolo, who has owned the property since 2009.
In 2021, for example, the borough zoning officer approved permits allowing a residential dining area on the first floor, indicating how long the borough has been aware of the ground-floor residential use. No one at that time indicated that the ground-floor kitchen was an issue, even during a period when space above operated as a wellness center.
Parking came under scrutiny because the new plan falls nine spots short of the 30 spaces required for a 150-seat restaurant.
Previous approvals have permitted the restaurant to operate with 25 spaces available for all uses. The new plan calls for 21 spaces — 16 designated for the restaurant, four for residential designated by signage, and one for a manager.
Regarding the residential component, the borough and applicant’s professionals agreed that five spaces were required to meet the ordinance standard. The applicant requested permission to provide four and a variance to address the shortfall. They also agreed to pay $5,000 into the borough parking fund to make up for the missing space.
The application was approved by a 6-1 vote, with Chairwoman Lisa Roselli being the lone dissenter. Her main concern was over parking.
Noting that the applicant agreed to pay $5,000, Roselli said it wasn’t enough.
“We currently have 25 parking spots and we’re going down to 21. That’s four spots, not one,” she said.
She cited parking and congestion as her reasons for voting no.
“This property is already maxed out the way it is now. We’re losing parking spots. It’s just going to be super congested.”
Given the 6–1 vote, the board feedback was overwhelmingly positive.
Vice Chairman Jim Barnes said he was pleased that the applicant was combining the restaurant lot and an adjoining lot, noting that there was no parking prior to their purchase of the 7-Eleven. Also worth noting, he said, is that many people walk to the restaurant.
“I believe the design organizes the space,” Barnes said, also noting that the applicant has agreed to pay to the parking fund, vegetative lot coverage has increased and overall lot coverage has been reduced. “I think it’s a nice design in the alleyway.”
Member Allison Morgan agreed with Barnes, adding that one of the reasons she supported the project is that it adds to the inventory of apartment housing in the borough, noting a shortage of housing locally.
Board member Tom Richards said the alley corner is a unique location that makes it a more acceptable spot for the variances being sought.
Variance details
The board approved a D-2 variance allowing the expansion of a pre-existing non-conforming use.
Other variances include relief from the total side-yard setback requirement, the maximum lot coverage and the vegetative-cover standard in light of the applicant’s commitment to increase coverage in the rear of the addition by about 120 square feet with permeable or grass pavers.
Relief was granted from the parking requirement as well.
The board also granted relief from the building façade requirements that govern the percentage of first-floor glass.
The approval says the property and the former 7-Eleven property must be formally consolidated into a single commercial lot.
Dark-sky, non-trespass light fixtures will be used to shield neighboring properties.
The design is subject to Historic Preservation Commission review.
No one from the public commented on the application.
By JAMES FITZPATRICK/For the Star and Wave
