Mayor Confirms Prosecutor's Probe Into Resident's Allegation of Illegal Use of Garage

Mayor Mark Dykoff has confirmed he is under investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office after it received an anonymous letter from an “angry taxpayer” claiming the detached garage on his Dogwood Lane home is being illegally utilized as a second dwelling.

“I don’t have an illegal residence on my property,” Dykoff said two weeks ago. “The investigation is ongoing. They have to investigate any accusation against a public official," he said of the prosecutor's office staff, who would not comment on the investigation.

As of Friday, it could not be confirmed whether the investigation is ongoing or complete.

The Planning Board and zoning Board of Adjustment approved Dykoff's home in 1996, when it was originally built, as a single-family dwelling with a detached garage, according to the municipal file.

The detached garage was a part of the site plans and was approved with electric, a stove, dryer, heater, furnace and plumbing for a full bathroom, John Curtin, director of Community Development and a member of the Planning Board, confirmed.

When the “angry taxpayer” complained, a code enforcement officer was sent to Dykoff’s home to ensure he was in compliance, Curtin said. There were no sleeping arrangements in the detached garage.

The amenities Dykoff’s detached garage was approved with are allowed, he said. A garage just cannot have the same full function of a home, meaning sleeping arrangements.

According to the “angry taxpayer’s” letter, the resident sought to obtain a permit to add an apartment onto the home for his or her son and alleged that Dykoff had done the same for his daughter.

Dykoff said that allegation is simply false.

“My daughter came back from college,” Dykoff said. “I let her and her friends back there to watch TV.”

The 40.3-foot-by-28.2-foot garage was built with vinyl siding, shutters and awnings. The site plans reveal a patio along the side of the garage, a garage door and an entrance.

The space is utilized as a “workshop and party room," Dykoff said.

Dykoff sees the allegations as a "non-issue" since he has the proper approvals and the letter was written anonymously.

“As elected officials, we get accused of a lot of things, and it’s part of being an elected official,” he said.

Dykoff may seek to get a variance from the zoning board in the future to be permitted to convert the space into a living area, he said. The cost of a variance would be approximately $600.

The township has yet to receive an application, Curtin said.

“There are those who won’t believe I’m innocent either way,” he said. “The only way to exonerate myself is to get a variance.”