Hopes set on January approval of medevac

NorthSTAR helicopter seeks permanent base at Somerset Airport under scaled-back plans

November 20 , 2005

BEDMINSTER -- The operators of Somerset Airport are hoping for final approval by late January of scaled-down plans for a permanent facility for the state police's NorthSTAR medevac helicopter.

The plans, which involve modifying an existing hangar, were filed with the township Planning Board this week and began moving toward approval, gaining Board of Health clearance Thursday for the septic system that would serve the building.

The medevac, which moved to Bedminster from its previous home atop Newark's University Hospital last February, has been operating out of an office in a temporary trailer. A special-use permit for the temporary facility, which was granted by the Township Committee, will expire Feb. 28.

Attorney William G. Mennen IV, who represents the airport, said he hoped the Planning Board would rule on the application by the end of January so that the work could be completed by the expiration date for the special-use permit.

He expected, however, that deliberations might be postponed until after the new members take their seats on the Planning Board after the first of the year.

The relocation of the medevac has been a source of controversy. The positions of Township Committee members on the special use permit for the medevac offices were campaign issues in the last two municipal elections, and a local opposition group has sued the township on medevac-related issues.

The group filed its third medevac-related lawsuit last month challenging a June Board of Adjustment decision on an interpretation of the zoning ordinance, and it is expected to object to the airport's application for a permanent medevac facility.

"We still have some excitement ahead of us," Mennen said.

The medevac transports victims of accident and trauma to regional trauma centers. It is a joint venture of the state police, the state Department of Health and Senior Services and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and is funded in part by a $1 surcharge on motor vehicle registration fees.

The NorthSTAR helicopter, which serves the northern half of the state (SouthSTAR serves the southern half), relocated to be closer to its clients, Air Medical Coordinator Terry Hoben said. Many of its calls originate from the Interstate 78 and Interstate 287 corridors and state highways such as routes 22, 31, 202 and 206.

The plans for a permanent medevac facility have been scaled back from conceptual plans submitted to the Planning Board in August 2004. The original plans called for a new apron at the north end of the airport property to house the medevac facility, while the new plans call for modifying existing buildings.

The original plan raised concerns among Planning Board members about the cutting down of trees and increased runoff created by adding to the amount of impervious surface, and would have required variances to exceed lot coverage limitations.

The new plan will require no variances, airport owner Daniel Walker said.

"I think we've gone a long way toward accepting the Planning Board's comments and implementing its recommendations," Mennen said.

The new plan calls for modifying an existing hangar to create 1,900 square feet of office space to house the medevac staff, which consists of four crew members, an administrator and a mechanic during the 12-hour daytime shift and four crew members during the nighttime shift, Walker said.

The helicopter would continue to be housed in the hangar that it now occupies, he said. Plans for a hangar to accommodate a second backup helicopter in the future have been dropped, he said.

The new design will have less impact on the local geography, but will still allow the medevac "to provide high-quality services," Hoben, the air medical coordinator, said.

The medevac's decision to relocate to better serve the population of the central and western parts of its service area has been even more successful than originally envisioned, he said. In July, the medevac had the highest call volume -- 105 patients -- since the program's inception in 1988, he said.

"It's been a complete success," he said. "The numbers reflect a population of patients who never flew before because the helicopter was too far away. We're getting to the side of patients quicker, and we're getting them to trauma centers faster."

The helicopter continues to generate opposition, however, from neighbors with noise and environmental concerns. They have formed an opposition group, the Bedminster, Branchburg, Bridgewater Concerned Citizens Coalition, which last month filed a lawsuit challenging the Board of Adjustment's decision on the zoning ordinance.

The Board of Adjustment ruled that the zoning ordinance does not exclude the operation of helicopters at the airport, but the coalition maintains that it does. The coalition had earlier filed medevac-related suits against the township, the airport and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

Those suits are still pending, Mennen said. Stefanie Matteson can be reached at (908) 707-3136 or smatteson@c-n.com

By STEFANIE MATTESON
The Courier News Staff Writer