LAFAYETTE — Following roughly three hours of testimony and questioning, the Township Land Use Board unanimously approved plans allowing an established medical marijuana company to operate a growing and processing facility on Route 94.

The board voted 7-0 on Thursday in favor of preliminary site plan approval and variances for Harmony Foundation of New Jersey to move its existing operation from Secaucus to the former site of the Schering-Plough complex. The plan was modified following board feedback at last month’s meeting and will now include the construction of one building approximately 382,000 square feet across two stories — rather than two separate structures — as well as two entrance lanes to reduce the potential for traffic buildup on the road.

Among the variances included in the approved plan are a building height of 38.4 feet where a maximum of 35 feet is permitted and 322 parking spaces where a building of that size would require at least 1,029. Engineer Owen Dykstra, speaking on behalf of Harmony, explained that the relatively low parking availability is due to the fact that the public will not be allowed to access the facility.

While Harmony’s Secaucus location also houses a retail operation, CEO Shaya Brodchandel reiterated Thursday that the Lafayette facility will be strictly a growing operation and will not include any sales of the product at the site.

Other conditions agreed upon by the board and the applicant include a black chain-link fence outside the facility facing Route 94 as well as an adequate tree buffer, both designed to make the building as inconspicuous as possible to residents and passing motorists. Dykstra noted that the company shares the goal of being unobtrusive to ensure security at the facility.

“Harmony wants this to be off (the road) where nobody recognizes it’s there,” he said. “It’s not intended to be an advertisement; it’s just a facility that they want to run their business in.”

At the same time, Brodchandel stated his desire to be a “good neighbor” in Lafayette and was happy to comply with the various modifications to the plan. Harmony is expected have about 350 employees, as stated in last month’s testimony, and the CEO expressed his hope to hire locally and be an asset to the community overall.

“Anything that, really, is in our ability and makes sense for us to help with the town, we’re here to work with you,” he told the board.

One of the main concerns of the board and members of the public was the potential for heavy traffic in the area of the facility, which the Harmony applicants attempted to minimize by including the second entrance lane. In addition, the company’s employees work in staggered shifts at the 24/7 operation, so Dykstra estimated that a maximum of 15 workers will enter the site during any 15-minute period.

The board and the roughly one dozen members of the public present at the meeting also expressed reservations about the white building and black fencing being too noticeable, along with barbed wire atop the fence making the facility look like a prison. In response, Emily Weiner of the Weiner Law Group, representing Harmony, noted that the tree buffering should cover much of the area, leaving passing motorists with only a brief glimpse of the entrance to the site.

According to Brodchandel, the Harmony Foundation received a state permit for the Secaucus facility in 2011 but did not get final approval to sell medical marijuana until July 2017. The company has been selling products since June 2018.

Harmony uses hydroponic growing for its medical marijuana, meaning no soil is used in the process, and all water and nutrients are heavily monitored to ensure a clean environment for products, Brodchandel said. Employees are required to go through an air shower and change clothes when they enter or leave the growing and processing areas.

In addition to the fence surrounding the building, armed guards will be on duty at all times for security purposes. Armed guards will also accompany all delivery trucks that transport the finished product to authorized dealers.

While there is no timetable for when the facility will be complete, Brodchandel said he is “aggressively pursuing” the start of work at the site pending approval from the state Department of Health.

Because the project is still in the early stages, there is no estimate of the tax revenue Lafayette will receive at this time.

Kyle Morel can also be contacted on Twitter: @KMorelNJH, on Facebook: Facebook.com/KMorelNJH, or by phone: 973-383-1292.