Sayreville Zoning Board Approves Plan to Turn Former Buddy Tavern Property Into New Homes
SAYREVILLE, NJ — A property that has sat quiet for years on Johnson’s Lane — including the former Buddy Tavern site — is now set for a major change after the Sayreville Zoning Board approved a plan to create three new residential lots.
Lestock Properties, LLC requested permission to subdivide the land and shift it from long-dormant commercial use to new homes. The move will formally separate the existing house on the property from the former bar and restore the site to a residential layout.
Joseph Vuich, a licensed engineer and planner representing the applicant, told the board the commercial building has been “dormant” and “shut down for at least seven, eight years.” He said converting the property to homes would provide a “more appropriate buffer to the school and some of the recreational areas and the playground areas on that site.”
Vuich said the neighborhood surrounding the property already consists of homes and a nearby school, making the change “particularly more suitable for this conversion.” He added that he saw no “negative criteria…with the granting of this variance.”
Board members agreed and voted to approve the plan with conditions to ensure the new lots are consistent with the residential character of the area. Vice Chairman Tom Kiski confirmed those requirements, saying, “we’re gonna include that as a condition of approval.”
Attorney Andrew Mays, representing Lestock Properties, said the proposal fits the neighborhood and will help move a long-inactive site forward. “I believe this will just be a benefit to the entire area with no negative,” Mays told the board.
The approval clears the way for the developer to begin preparing the property for three future homes, marking a new chapter for a site many residents remember from its days as the Buddy Tavern.
